St. Sophia Cathedral in Novgorod

St. Sophia Cathedral has been the main Orthodox church of Veliky Novgorod for almost a thousand years. It is located on the left bank of the Volkhov River on the territory of the Novgorod Kremlin, in its most ancient part – where the Vladychny Court was located. The Cathedral of St. Sophia makes a strong impression: a majestic, monumental structure of white stone is crowned with five domes in the shape of helmets of Old Russian warriors, four of which are painted in lead color, and the fifth, the central one, sparkles with golden highlights in the sun. Once in the ancient city, be sure to find time to visit this attraction, because not for nothing in Russia said: “Where Sofia, there is Novgorod.”

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Video: St. Sophia Cathedral and Belfry

Contents

History of St. Sophia Cathedral

St. Sophia Cathedral in Novgorod, an outstanding monument of Old Russian architecture and the oldest extant Orthodox church in Russia, was built by Prince Vladimir Yaroslavovich of Novgorod at the command of his father, Prince Yaroslav the Wise of Kiev. It took five years to build the temple: the work was carried out from 1045 to 1050. It was consecrated by Bishop Luke (Luka Zhidyata), a Russian priest whom Prince Yaroslav the Wise, despite the objections of the Constantinople clergy, elected as successor to the Greek bishop of Novgorod, Joachim.

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Luke, who became the first bishop of Russian origin, is honored as a saint by the Russian Orthodox Church. He is also known for being the author of the first proper Russian work of spiritual literature, “Instruction to the Brethren”, which is of significant historical and cultural interest.

Luke was the first bishop of Russian origin to be honored by the Russian Orthodox Church as a saint.

For centuries, St. Sophia Cathedral was the spiritual center of the Novgorod Republic, a Russian medieval state that existed from 1136 to 1478.

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In 1478, the Novgorod Republic became part of the Moscow state. Under the then ruling Prince Ivan III of Moscow, the Sofia Cathedral was established as one of the main temples of the united power. Since then all Russian tsars considered it their duty to worship the shrines of the temple, to leave here the memory of themselves and their deeds.

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Preserved icons, precious utensils, sewn covers, shrouds, handwritten and old printed books bring to our days the names of famous donors – tsars and boyars, clergymen and secular patrons. All the great battles of the Russian army were accompanied by donations and contributions to the St. Sophia Cathedral. But precious relics throughout the centuries were often destroyed. Damage to the authenticity of the temple was done during the Petrine times, when the ancient artistic heritage was vigorously displaced by secular culture, and in the XIX century during the synodal updates.

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The St. Sophia Cathedral suffered most of all in the twentieth century. In 1922, during the Soviet campaign to seize religious valuables, the church property was mostly requisitioned, and in 1929 the authorities closed the church for services. Its premises housed an anti-religious museum, which displayed the treasures of the cathedral’s sacristy – it was meant to denounce the church, showing its “unrighteous” wealth.

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It should be said that St. Sophia Cathedral was not only a religious building. In its huge dungeons stored the city treasury and numerous treasures not only of religious origin. Actually, the decision to create a museum, made thanks to the efforts of the Society of Antiquity Lovers, whose members were part of the commission on the seizure of valuables, allowed to preserve and leave in the cathedral historical relics.

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During the Great Patriotic War, the temple was looted by the occupiers, the structure was damaged by shelling and bombing. After the war, the building was restored and included in the Novgorod Museum-Reserve.

In 1991, the St. Sophia Cathedral was handed over to the Russian Orthodox Church. Patriarch of All Russia Alexy II consecrated the cathedral on August 16 of the same year. Today it has the status of the cathedral of the Novgorod Metropolis.

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Architecture

The foundation stone of Novgorod’s Sofia Cathedral was laid on May 21 (June 3), 1045, the Day of the Holy Equal-to-the-Apostles Constantine and Helen. According to legends, on that day the wooden “thirteen-headed” Church of Sophia – the first temple of the Wisdom of God in the Slavic lands – burned down (“ascended”). Other sources claim that the church burned in the year of completion of the construction of a new temple, but there is no exact confirmation of both versions.

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By this time in Kiev was already towering St. Sophia Cathedral, built in the Byzantine style. It may seem that the temple in Novgorod in many respects repeats the Kiev model. This is partly true: in the first half of the XI century, the traditions of erecting structures made of stone had not yet developed. Probably, Prince Vladimir Yaroslavich invited stone masters from Kiev or even from Constantinople itself.

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Building materials and the technique of mixed masonry of stone and plinth are practically similar to the Kiev constructions. The masonry is bonded with cement – pink lime mortar mixed with crushed bricks.

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Both churches are five-nave, with galleries and stair towers, extensive choirs. However, the traditional cross-dome system in the St. Sophia Cathedral in Novgorod was supplemented by side chapels, the basis of which were three small chapels that already existed. The architects united them into a single temple complex, connecting them with additional galleries.

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These architectural volumes became a distinctive feature of the appearance of Sophia of Novgorod. They determined the height of the vaults of the temple core, the way of overlapping the roof. The necessity of linking the levels of all buildings, combined into one building, caused the addition of walls, the erection of supporting arches (akbutans). Forced increase in the height of choirs, subdome spaces and other volumes of the cathedral were non-canonical for Byzantine and Kiev church architecture. These elongated in height proportions later became a distinctive feature of Novgorod’s own temple architecture.

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The inner walls of St. Sophia Cathedral are filled with voices – specially made vessels made of ceramics. Their arrangement is carefully thought out. The openings of most of the voices are directed to the outer space, but some vessels are turned with their necks inward. Thanks to such alternation in a large volume of the temple provided excellent acoustics, while eliminating echo. Voices have another purpose: spherical shape gives the vessels a special strength, and since they are hollow, the weight of the dome is significantly reduced. Accordingly, the load of the massive structure on the supporting drum, supporting arches and brick vaults is reduced.

The temple has five domes, the sixth crowning the stair tower, which is located in the west gallery south of the entrance. They are made in a form reminiscent of Old Russian helmets. From the cross of the middle dome, first gilded in the XV century, for almost a millennium a lead dove has been looking at the city. According to legend, the bird sat down to rest on the towering cross and saw the torment of the Novgorodians, to which they were condemned by Ivan the Terrible, who sent his oprichniks here. The pigeon was petrified with horror. According to legend, Novgorod will exist until its winged symbol flies away.

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The bell tower of St. Sophia Cathedral was erected in the XVII century. It can be climbed and viewed from the height of the picturesque surroundings. Exhibitions of bells are periodically held here.

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Paintings of St. Sophia Cathedral

Probably, the Sofia Cathedral in Novgorod began to be painted immediately after the completion of construction. But from the original painting remained only fragments of frescoes of the central dome, which depicts the figures of prophets and archangels. The image of Christ Pantocrator, which was located in the center of the painting, was destroyed as a result of a direct hit by a shell during the Great Patriotic War.

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In addition, in Martyr’s porch under the later paintings restorers managed to find an ancient wall image of the Equal Apostles Constantine and Helen. There is an opinion that this fresco should have been the basis for a mosaic, as it was painted in diluted colors.

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The present painting of St. Sophia Cathedral mainly dates back to the end of the 19th century.

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Relics

The temple is famous for its iconostases. The main one is decorated with icons of the XV-XVI centuries, among them is Sophia, the Wisdom of God (XV century). It stands out for its mystical symbolism: the image is dominated by scarlet tones – the Wisdom in the Novgorod version has a red color, signifying the sacrifice of Christ.

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On the Nativity iconostasis is the Tikhvin icon of the Virgin Mary (16th century). It sanctified the conclusion of the Peace of Stolbovo, which ended the Russian-Swedish war of 1614-1617. It is framed in a risa made to the order of Tsarevna Sophia. On the same iconostasis is the image of the “Savior on the Throne” of the XIV century, as well as images of the XVI-XIX centuries.

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The primary shrine of St. Sophia Cathedral is the icon of the Mother of God “The Sign”, especially revered in the Orthodox world. The Mother of God is depicted on it with her arms spread out to the sides, open palms outward, that is, in the traditional gesture denoting intercessory prayer. This iconographic type of depiction of the Mother of God is called Oranta. According to legend, the icon saved the inhabitants of Novgorod from the siege of Suzdal Prince Andrei Bogolyubsky in 1170

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The western facade of St. Sophia Cathedral is decorated with Magdeburg Gates, which are also called Korsun, Plotsk, Sigtun Gates. They are made of bronze, in Romanesque style and covered with numerous high reliefs and sculptures depicting Gospel scenes. The gates have served as the front entrance to the church for centuries. Today they are open only on holidays, during the hours of service conducted by the Archbishop of Novgorod and Starorussky.

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According to one of the versions, which most pleased the inhabitants of Novgorod, the gate was made in 1153 in Magdeburg, and is a trophy of the Novgorodians who went on a military campaign against the Swedish capital Sigtuna in 1187. About the beauty of the gate, skillfully created by Western European craftsmen, were legends. According to one of the legends, in the XVII century, when Novgorod was occupied by the Swedish king’s troops, the monarch ordered to bring the relic, which had been lost five centuries ago, back to his homeland. Fortunately, the Swedes failed to remove the massive gate from the main Novgorod temple.

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The main cross of St. Sophia Cathedral has also become a legend. On July 5, 1942, Soviet troops shelled the German commandant’s office located on the territory of the Novgorod Kremlin. Five of the 80 shells fired caused considerable damage to the cathedral. The explosions significantly damaged the dome. The Germans used its gold plating for souvenirs, which were sent home in the form of plates, snuff boxes and other soldier’s handicrafts. The cross hanging on the chains together with the guardian dove went to the allies of the Germans – the Spaniards: the staff of the engineering corps of their “Blue Division” was based in the city. The temple relic was taken to Spain as a trophy, and until the beginning of this century was in Madrid. Its temporary shelter became the chapel of the Museum of the Military Engineering Academy.

Since the early 2000s, there have been talks between Russia and Spain about returning the cross to its homeland. Following a conversation between the Russian president and the King of Spain, the Spaniards agreed to return the relic. In Madrid remained its exact copy.

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On November 16, 2004, in the walls of the Cathedral of Christ the Savior, the cathedral of the Russian Orthodox Church, the head of the Spanish Defense Ministry solemnly handed over the cross to Patriarch Alexy II of Moscow and All Russia. Today it is located in the interior of St. Sophia of Novgorod, and in its place stands a copy made in 2006 and installed a year later. On top of the cross again sits the legendary dove guarding the city.

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Visitors

St. Sophia Cathedral in Veliky Novgorod is open daily from 8:00-20:00. Entrance is free. The cathedral is active, so it is necessary to observe the rules of visiting an Orthodox temple. It is forbidden to take pictures inside. To see the interior decoration, frescoes, read the biographies of the saints and attach to the relics, it is recommended to allocate 40-60 minutes. You can attend the divine service, submit notes for health and repose, and place candles.

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To find out more information and to order a guide you can call the cathedral phone number: +7 (816) 277-35-56.

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How to get there

The address of St. Sophia Cathedral: 11, territory of the Novgorod Kremlin,

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You can get to the temple by public transportation: buses № 17,17A, 26, 7, 7A go to Sennaya Square. Entering the Novgorod Kremlin from the side of the Kremlin Park, you need to walk straight ahead for about 50 meters. St. Sophia Cathedral will be on the left side, opposite the monument of the 1000th anniversary of Russia. Its shining domes can be seen from afar.

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