Architectural monuments of ancient Rus'. Temples of ancient Rus'

In the era of Ancient Rus' there was a cross-dome system. The history of the construction of durable monumental cross-domed churches made of stone dates back to the construction of the Tithe Church in Kyiv, the construction of which lasted seven years (from 989 to 996).

Initially, the technology for building stone churches and their typology was borrowed by ancient Russian architects from Byzantine traditional canons. In addition, after an important historical event - the Baptism of Rus', the first churches were built by craftsmen invited from Byzantium.

Such buildings can safely be called outstanding examples of Byzantine architecture, but from the very beginning these Christian religious buildings began to show their own original features. Their appearance was due to the peculiarities of local conditions and the wishes of customers.

A year after the baptism of Rus' in 988, construction began on the Church of the Tithes, which was first built from. Subsequently, this pearl of ancient Russian architecture was destroyed during the invasion of Batu Khan.

During the reign of the great Kyiv prince Yaroslav the Wise, large-scale construction of Christian churches began. It was during this era that the St. Sophia Cathedral was built, the size of which had no equal not only in Rus', but also in Byzantium itself.

Since ancient times, Kyiv has been called the mother of Russian cities. The official date of birth of the city is considered to be 1037, although the first settlements appeared on the banks of the Dnieper five centuries earlier.

After the victory of the Russians over the Pechenegs during the reign of Yaroslav the Wise, Kyiv acquired the significance of the main city of the Old Russian state. And this dominance is consolidated by the construction, which was built in 1037 - 1044.

Sophia of Kiev served as the main temple of all Ancient Rus', whose population had just been baptized. Therefore, the grandiose dimensions and beauty of the structure should have shocked the imagination and delighted everyone who saw the St. Sophia Cathedral.

The thirteen-domed, five-nave cross-domed church was distinguished by its massiveness and heaviness of forms, giving it solemnity and significance. The cathedral is unique - simple brickwork without plaster emphasizes the severity and grandeur of the structure.

The interior decoration was rich and skillfully executed by the best craftsmen of their time. From the inside, all the walls and vaults of the temple were covered with colorful frescoes and mosaics on Christian themes.

The cathedral served not only as a cult building, but also as the main public building of Ancient Rus'. Here they received foreign ambassadors and gave the right to reign to the Novgorod, Suzdal and Rostov princes.

According to the model and likeness of Sophia of Kyiv, the second example of ancient Russian cross-domed architecture was built - St. Sophia Cathedral in Novgorod(1045 - 1050). However, the temple had significant differences. It was made of unprocessed stones that retained their natural shape. The stones were fastened together with lime mortar.

Subsequently, the walls were whitewashed with plaster, which, in combination with the golden domes, made the building even more picturesque.

The Novgorod St. Sophia Cathedral breathes with heroic strength. This temple served as the main shrine of the Novgorod Republic. Novgorodians were very proud of their Sofia, they revered the cathedral and said: “Where Sofia is, there is Novgorod.”

In the 12th century, St. Sophia Cathedral became a symbol of the Novgorod principality, independent from Kyiv and other cities. Novgorod had its own elected government - the veche. The veche bell of the St. Sophia Cathedral called people to veche meetings. Subsequently, Novgorod submitted to the Moscow prince Ivan III, and the veche bell was removed and taken to Moscow.

In 1066, the third temple was built - a seven-domed, five-nave St. Sophia Cathedral in Polotsk. The construction of three temples of the same type on the territory of present-day Russia, Ukraine and Belarus was an indicator of the political and cultural unity of the three main parts of the ancient Russian state.

In the 12th century, the most powerful in Rus' was Vladimir - the Suzdal principality. Its rulers, the princes, trying to consolidate their power, built majestic palaces and temples that were supposed to preserve their glory for centuries.

The founder of the city of Vladimir in 1108 was the grandson of the Kyiv prince Yaroslav the Wise, Vladimir Monomakh. His father’s work was continued by his son and successor Yuri Dolgoruky, who was so nicknamed for his desire to expand the territory of his principality and subjugate Kyiv.

During the reign of Yuri, the most significant cities of the Vladimir-Suzdal land were founded: Yuryev-Polsky, Zvenigorod, Moscow, Dmitrov, Pereyaslavl-Zalessky. Today, all of them are cities - monuments that constitute the glory and pride of the masters of ancient Russian architecture.

The Vladimir-Suzdal principality reached its greatest prosperity during the reign of Andrei Bogolyubsky, the son of Yuri Dolgoruky. In less than 20 years of his reign, Andrei initiated the construction of many beautiful architectural structures, which we continue to admire today.

According to data from chronicle sources, in the period from 1158 to 1164 the Golden Gate was built in Vladimir, as well as the golden-domed Assumption Cathedral, which became a symbol of the wealth and strength of the powerful Prince Andrei.

Small and graceful, it became a real masterpiece. It was built by Prince Bogolyubsky in honor of his deceased son. The refined forms of the temple evoke admiration for the art of the architects of Ancient Rus'.

Construction technology

The main building material of the Vladimir-Suzdal land was white stone. Blocks measuring 50 by 50 cm were cut out of it. The walls of the temples were laid out from two rows of such blocks, and the space between them was filled with rubble and filled with a binding solution.

This method of constructing walls made it possible not only to give the masonry additional strength, but also to use a smaller amount of white stone, which was considered a scarce material due to the difficulty of extraction. Today there is very little white stone left.

Stone carving

White stone lends itself well to processing. The architects of Ancient Rus' used this quality of material to decorate the facades of their buildings. Stone carving in the 12th - 13th centuries was a very popular technique for decorating the walls of temples.

A striking example of carved stone decor is the one built in 1194 - 1197. Its walls are covered with continuous carved stone relief. The most complex patterns are a symbol of the richness and diversity of the world, inhabited by strange animals and fabulous birds sitting on the branches of unprecedented plants.

Temple decor

An integral part of the decoration of Russian churches were picturesque images of saints. The most revered icon was the icon of the Mother of God with a baby in her arms. It is rightfully considered one of the most perfect works of world art. icon of the Vladimir Mother of God, written in the 11th - 12th centuries.

Icons, frescoes and mosaics made by famous artists in many other churches are also of great artistic value. Among them are frescoes by Dionysius, icons by Andrei Rublev, ceramic tiles by Stepan Polubes. The most significant works of these great masters today are kept in the Tretyakov Gallery and other museums.

Tithe Church (Church of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary) in Kyiv - the first stone church of the Old Russian state, erected by Saint Vladimir, Equal to the Apostles, on the site of the death of the Russian first martyrs Theodore and his son John. The Tale of Bygone Years dates the beginning of construction of the Tithe Church to 989. Prince Vladimir Svyatoslavich allocated a tenth of his income for the maintenance of the church and metropolis - tithe, which is where its name came from. At the time of its construction, it was the largest Kyiv temple. In 1240, the hordes of Batu Khan, having taken Kyiv, destroyed the Tithe Church - the last stronghold of the people of Kiev. According to legend, the Church of the Tithes collapsed under the weight of the people who climbed onto the vaults, trying to escape from the Mongols.

Saint Sophia Cathedral in Kyiv, built in the first half of the 11th century by Prince Yaroslav the Wise on the site of the victory in 1037 over the Pechenegs. At the turn of the 17th-18th centuries, it was externally rebuilt in the Ukrainian Baroque style. Inside the cathedral, the world's most complete ensemble of original mosaics (260 sq. m.) and frescoes (3000 sq. m.) from the first half of the 11th century has been preserved. Included in the UNESCO World Heritage List. In 1240, the St. Sophia Cathedral was plundered by Batu's soldiers. After this it remained a metropolitan residence until the end of the 13th century.

St. Sophia Cathedral in Novgorod- the main Orthodox church of Veliky Novgorod, created in 1045-1050 by Yaroslav the Wise. It is a cross-domed church. For centuries it remained the spiritual center of the Novgorod Republic. On the cross of the central dome there is a lead figure of a dove - a symbol of the Holy Spirit. According to legend, when Ivan the Terrible brutally dealt with the residents of Novgorod in 1570, a dove sat down to rest on the cross of Sophia. Seeing the terrible carnage from there, the dove was petrified with horror. During the occupation of Novgorod by Nazi troops, the temple was damaged and looted; after the war, it was completely restored and became a department of the Novgorod Museum-Reserve.

Church of the Intercession on the Nerl- a white stone temple, an outstanding monument of architecture of the Vladimir-Suzdal school. It was built in 1165 by Prince Andrei Bogolyubsky in memory of his deceased son Izyaslav. The church was consecrated in honor of the Feast of the Intercession of the Virgin Mary, established in Rus' in the middle of the 12th century on the initiative of Andrei Bogolyubsky. Unique feature - built on a man-made hill. The usual foundation was continued by the base of the walls, which were covered with clay soil of a mound lined with white stone. This technology made it possible to resist rising water during river floods. The walls of the church are strictly vertical, but thanks to the exceptionally well-found proportions, they look inclined inward, which achieves the illusion of a greater height of the structure. The walls of the church are decorated with carved reliefs. The church is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Cathedral of the Archangel- an Orthodox church located on Cathedral Square of the Moscow Kremlin, was built in 1505-1508. under the leadership of the Italian architect Aleviz Novy. Built of brick, decorated with white stone. Motifs of Italian Renaissance architecture are widely used in the decoration of the walls. It is the tomb of rulers from the Rurik and Romanov dynasties: the first to be buried here was Grand Duke Ivan Kalita, the last was Emperor Peter II. Object of cultural heritage of the Russian Federation.

Assumption Cathedral in Vladimir- the white stone cathedral was built under Grand Duke Andrei Bogolyubsky in 1158-1160. Before the rise of Moscow, it was the main temple of Vladimir-Suzdal Rus', where the Vladimir and Moscow princes were married for their great reign. A unique monument of Russian architecture of the 12th century. One of the few churches in which unique frescoes by Andrei Rublev have been preserved. Included in the list of UNESCO World Heritage Sites.

Golden Gate in Vladimir - built in 1164 under the Vladimir prince Andrei Bogolyubsky. In addition to defensive functions, they served as the main entrance to the city and served a direct religious purpose - they housed the active Church of the Deposition of the Robe. After the capture of Vladimir by the Tatar-Mongols, in 1238, the oak gates covered with gilded copper were removed from their hinges, loaded onto a cart, and an attempt was made to take them out of the city to the Horde. However, the ice on the Klyazma River collapsed under the cart, and the gate sank. UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Golden Gate in Kyiv- a monument to the defensive architecture of the Old Russian state during the reign of Prince Yaroslav the Wise. They got their name from the Golden Gate of Constantinople, which performed similar functions. This was probably a kind of rivalry with the great Byzantine Empire. The Golden Gate is a fortress tower with a wide passage. The height of the surviving walls reaches 9.5 meters. In 1240, the gate was badly damaged during the siege and capture of the city by Batu's hordes. Completely reconstructed at the beginning of the 21st century.

Dmitrievsky Cathedral in Vladimir - the court cathedral, erected by Vsevolod the Big Nest at the end of the 12th century. It is a white-stone cross-domed temple of the Vladimir-Suzdal architectural school. Famous for its white stone carvings. Included in the list of UNESCO World Heritage Sites.

Assumption Cathedral of the Moscow Kremlin- an Orthodox church located on Cathedral Square of the Moscow Kremlin. Built in 1475-1479 under the leadership of the Italian architect Aristotle Fioravanti. The main temple of the Russian state. The famous icon painter Dionysius took part in the painting of the cathedral. In 1547, the crowning of Ivan IV took place here for the first time. The Zemsky Council of 1613 was held in the building of the cathedral, at which Mikhail Fedorovich was elected tsar. During the St. Petersburg period, it continued to be the place of coronation of all Russian emperors, starting with Peter II. In 1812, the cathedral was desecrated and looted by the Napoleonic army, although the most valuable shrines were evacuated to Vologda.

Blagoveshchensky cathedral- the temple on Cathedral Square was built in 1489 by Pskov craftsmen. The cathedral was very badly damaged in the fire of 1547 and restored in 1564. In 1572, a porch was added to the cathedral, which later received the name Grozny. The original iconostasis of the cathedral contained icons painted in 1405 by Andrei Rublev and Theophanes the Greek. After the fire of 1547, two ancient rows were selected for the iconostasis - Deesis and Festive, from the era of Theophanes the Greek and Andrei Rublev. The floor of the cathedral is unique: it is made of soft honey-colored jasper. Until the 18th century it was the home church of the Moscow sovereigns. Object of cultural heritage of the Russian Federation.

Faceted Chamber- the main ceremonial reception hall of the Grand Duke's palace. It hosted meetings of the Boyar Duma, sessions of Zemsky Sobors, festivities in honor of the conquest of Kazan (1552), the victory at Poltava (1709), and the conclusion of the Treaty of Nystadt with Sweden (1721). Here, at the Zemsky Sobor in 1653, a decision was made to reunite Ukraine with Russia. Built in 1487-1491 by order of Ivan III by architects Marco Ruffo and Pietro Antonio Solari. It got its name from the eastern facade, decorated with faceted “diamond” rustication. On the south side of the facade there is a staircase, which is now called the “Red Porch”. Russian tsars and emperors passed along it for their coronation in the Assumption Cathedral. In the 21st century, the Chamber of Facets is one of the representative halls at the residence of the President of the Russian Federation. Object of cultural heritage of the Russian Federation.

Trinity-Sergius Lavra- the largest Orthodox monastery in Russia, founded by Sergius of Radonezh in the 13th century. It was the spiritual center of the Moscow lands and supported the Moscow princes. Here in 1380, Sergius blessed the army of Prince Dmitry Ivanovich, who was going to battle with Mamai. On September 8, 1380, during the Battle of Kulikovo, the monks and heroes of the Trinity Monastery - Peresvet and Oslyabya - entered the battlefield. For several centuries the monastery was the cultural and religious center of the Russian state. In the monastery, chronicles were compiled, manuscripts were copied, and icons were painted.

Outstanding icon painters Andrei Rublev and Daniil Cherny participated in the painting of the Trinity Cathedral of the monastery; the famous “Trinity” was painted for the iconostasis of the cathedral. During the Time of Troubles, the Trinity Monastery withstood a 16-month siege by Polish-Lithuanian invaders.

The architectural ensemble of the Lavra is included in the UNESCO World Heritage List.

Andronikov Monastery (Spaso-Andronikov) former monastery within the city of Moscow. The monastery's Spassky Cathedral is the oldest surviving Moscow temple. Founded in the mid-14th century by Metropolitan Alexy. In the interior of the Spassky Cathedral, fragments of frescoes painted by Andrei Rublev have survived. In the XIV-XVII centuries, the Andronikov Monastery was one of the centers for the correspondence of books. In 1812, the monastery was destroyed by the French. In 1985, the monastery became the Central Museum of Ancient Russian Culture and Art named after Andrei Rublev (CMiAR). Object of cultural heritage of the Russian Federation.

Architectural forms corresponding to a new stage in the development of Russian architecture appeared with full clarity already in the first half of the 12th century. The temples of this time go back not to the huge cathedrals of the Kievan Rus era, but to monuments such as the Assumption Cathedral of the Pechersk Monastery. These are simple, balanced buildings with clearly defined facade planes, crowned by one massive dome. Their appearance becomes more withdrawn, detached from the world, retaining these features even in the presence of an external gallery. The dominant type is a small three-nave cross-domed church with small choirs only in the western part. The desire to create a more compact volume forced the abandonment of stair towers and their replacement with narrow staircases located in the thickness of the wall. If in large cathedrals of the era of Kievan Rus the interior is picturesque and diverse, has a large number of different aspects, then in the monuments of the 12th century the construction of interiors is clear and clear, they could be seen immediately from one point. The nature of the interior decoration also changes; fresco, as a rule, replaces mosaic; stacked mosaic floors are replaced by floors made of glazed ceramic tiles.

However, if this was the general nature of the changes that took place in Russian architecture by the middle of the 12th century, then the forms in which these changes manifested themselves had their own special flavor in each architectural school. At the same time, the basic principle of architecture of the 11th century - the correspondence of the external appearance of the building to its planned scheme and design - was fully preserved in the 12th century. Likewise, the correspondence between construction techniques and decorative elements has been preserved. Structures, building materials, and forms of decorative decoration were still inseparable for the architect. Therefore, changes in construction technology or the transition to the use of other building materials immediately changed the entire decorative system of the building.

Monumental structures were built exclusively by order of princes or the church. Only from the second half of the 12th century they were gradually joined by large boyars, corporations of artisans and traders. At first, while this principality did not yet have its own cadre of builders, craftsmen were invited from the land with which the closest political or church relations existed. As a result, where strong political and church ties remained, the formation of independent architectural schools proceeded slowly; on the contrary, the isolation of the principalities almost always determined the originality of its architecture.

Many Russian lands throughout the 12th century continued to follow Kiev in architecture to one degree or another, even when it had practically lost its significance as the leading political center of Rus'. Yes, no
Despite the presence of their own masters, the architecture of such principalities as Chernigov and Ryazan, Smolensk, Volyn, preserved the Kyiv tradition almost until the end of the 12th century. In other lands - Galicia, Vladimir-Suzdal, Novgorod, Polotsk - already by the middle of the 12th century, their own architectural schools had developed, significantly different from the Kyiv one.

Monuments of Kyiv architecture of the 12th century differ from more ancient compositions and construction techniques. The walls are now laid exclusively from brick and not in the previous, almost square, but more elongated shape. The new technique made it possible to abandon masonry “with a hidden row” and move to a simpler equal-layer masonry, where the ends of all rows of bricks faced the front surface of the walls. This reduced the decorativeness of the wall surfaces. In order not to impoverish the facades, architects began to introduce additional decorative elements that could easily be made from brick - arcature belts, multi-stage portals, windows combined into one composition, etc. An important element of the facades became massive half-columns leaning against the blades and making the wall more plastic. At the same time, only the intermediate blades were complicated with half-columns, while the corner blades were left flat. As in the 11th century, each division of the facade ended with a semicircular zakomara. Since the principle of matching the wall decor with the building material was preserved, the walls, as before, were often not covered with plaster.

Few monuments of Kyiv architecture from the 12th century have survived. The six-pillar St. Cyril Church in Kyiv (after 1146) and the somewhat smaller church in Kanev (1144) have been preserved in all their main parts, although they are greatly distorted on the outside. Very close to them is the Church of the Assumption on Podil in Kyiv (1131-1136, now defunct). The four-pillar type includes the Church of Vasily (or Trekhsvyatitelskaya, 1183) in Kyiv, which has not survived to this day, and the small church of the Zarubsky Monastery on the Dnieper, discovered by excavations.

Several monuments of the 12th century have been preserved in Chernigov. Such is the six-pillar Cathedral of Boris and Gleb, recently restored to its original forms, but without an adjacent gallery, the former appearance of which has not been precisely established. Probably, its decoration included the white stone capitals found here during excavations, covered with magnificent carvings. The Cathedral of the Yeletsky Monastery, also with six pillars, instead of a gallery had vestibules in front of each portal and ended with a three-domed structure, rare for monuments of the 12th century. A small chapel was built into the southwestern corner of the temple. The Annunciation Cathedral (1186), discovered by excavations, rivaled the Kyiv buildings of the 11th century in the luxury of its decoration: its central part was covered with a magnificent mosaic floor depicting a peacock. Outside the temple was surrounded by a gallery. Chernigov masters also created an example of a pillarless solution used for the smallest churches - the Elias Church. The girth arches supporting the drum of the dome rest here not on pillars, but on pylons in the corners of the room. This is the only pillarless church of the 12th century that has preserved its vaults and dome. The facades of some Chernigov buildings were partially plastered and laid out in squares, imitating masonry from white stone blocks. This apparently reflected the interest in the white stone architecture of Galich and Vladimir Rus'.

Politically connected with Chernigov, the Ryazan principality followed the architectural tastes of its metropolis. The capital of the principality was a huge city, beautifully located on the high bank of the Oka, protected by giant earthen ramparts (now the site of Old Ryazan). Here, excavations have uncovered the ruins of three stone temples, two of which date back to the mid-12th century. These are six-pillar cathedrals; one of them had three porches. As in Chernigov, carved white stone parts were used in brickwork in Ryazan buildings. It is possible that they were erected by Chernigov craftsmen. Ryazan, which lived in very difficult military-political conditions, apparently did not have its own builders.

The monuments of the capital city of Volyn - Vladimir-Volynsky - belong to the same Kyiv architectural tradition. The Assumption Cathedral (mid-12th century, restored at the end of the 19th century, Fig. 16) differs from the Kyiv and Chernigov monuments only in minor details. Excavations there also uncovered the remains of a second similar, but much smaller church - the so-called Old Cathedral.

Smolensk became one of the largest centers of monumental construction in the 12th century. Advantageously located between Kiev and Novgorod on the great Dnieper-Volkhov route “from the Varangians to the Greeks,” it quickly grew rich and strengthened its military-political significance in the conditions of inter-princely struggle. The city lay on the picturesque heights of the left bank of the Dnieper, where hills and plateaus with deep winding ravines were combined in spectacular contrast. Nature itself created the relief here, calling architects to build. Unfortunately, most of the monuments of Smolensk architecture have been destroyed and are known only from excavations.

In 1101, Prince Vladimir Monomakh founded the city cathedral in Smolensk. It has not survived, but found samples of building materials (bricks, mortar) suggest that the cathedral was started by South Russians
masters. Subsequently, apparently with the participation of Chernigov architects, extensive construction began in Smolensk, and by the middle of the 12th century it undoubtedly already had its own fairly experienced personnel.

Of the Smolensk buildings of the mid-12th century, only the Church of Peter and Paul has survived almost entirely - a classic example of a four-pillar, single-domed temple, powerful, static and strict (ill. 19). Blades with half-columns add plasticity to the walls, enlivened by spots of windows and a portal. The curb belt, the arcatures at the heels of the zakomars and the convex crosses laid out on the wide planes of the angular blades only emphasize the harsh power of the walls. Compared to the impressive heaviness of the main volume, the large twelve-sided head is relatively light and graceful; an elegant belt made of ceramic tiles was introduced into the decoration of its cornice. The interior of the temple amazes with its grandeur and some coldness. A narrow, poorly lit staircase in the thickness of the western wall leads to the choir, the southwestern corner of which is occupied by a separate chapel with its own apse.

16. Assumption Cathedral in Vladimir-Volynsky. Mid-12th century
17. St. George's Church in Staraya Ladoga. Second half of the 12th century.
18. Transfiguration Cathedral in Pereslavl-Zalessky. 1152
19. Church of Peter and Paul in Smolensk. Mid-12th century

Church of St. John the Evangelist in Smolensk. Plan

Dating back to the 60s-70s of the 12th century, the Church of St. John the Evangelist almost completely repeats the forms of the Church of Peter and Paul, but it has survived to only a little more than half its original height. Both churches had tomb galleries. Among the monuments of this time, uncovered by excavations in Smolensk, there are several more modest in size, four-pillar, devoid of galleries, but there are also larger ones, for example, the Boris and Gleb Cathedral of Smyada of a certain monastery - a six-pillar temple with a gallery (1145-1147).

Of interest was a small pillarless church discovered by excavations in the Smolensk Detinets, the facades of which are dissected by flat blades, as in an ordinary four-pillar temple. This is a successful attempt to create a new type of religious building with a spacious, pillarless interior. In Detinets, the remains of another building have been discovered - a small rectangular building, apparently a princely mansion. He stood on the high edge of the mountain, from where a wide panorama of the city opened up. The pillarless church and tower were erected in the middle of the 12th century.

Near the Church of St. John the Evangelist, archaeologists also found a very unusual, round structure - a rotunda with a diameter of about 18 meters with four pillars placed quite closely in the center. This is the Church of the German Mother of God, which served foreign merchants living in Smolensk. In terms of plan, it exactly corresponds to the northern European Romanesque churches of the second half of the 12th century; The construction was probably supervised by a Scandinavian architect, but the building was obviously erected by Smolensk craftsmen using their usual bricklaying technique.

In most of the listed centers - in Kyiv, Chernigov, Smolensk - construction in the 12th century was carried out by local craftsmen. This is evidenced by differences in architectural forms and details of construction equipment. But all of them affect only in particulars, without affecting the general artistic, compositional and technical principles. The presence in Rus' in the 12th century of a large area of ​​the Kyiv architectural tradition is beyond doubt.

The architecture of the Novgorod land is developing differently. Gradually, during the first half of the 12th century, new architectural forms were developed here, which led to the formation of a completely independent school, different from the Kyiv one. The change in the social appearance of Veliky Novgorod and the uniqueness of its political fate had a great influence on the isolation of Novgorod art. In the 12th century, Novgorod gradually freed itself from the power of the prince and became a feudal republic, headed by the top boyars and the archbishop. Under the dominance of the city nobility, a significant role is still played by the trade and craft population - the “black people”, who have repeatedly stated their demands at the assembly. Culture is becoming more democratic, which also affects architecture.

Since the middle of the 12th century, stone construction in the Novgorod land was mainly led by the boyars, merchants and townspeople. Only small four-pillar churches are erected, which are either the parish church of the street or the home church of a rich boyar. Small chapels appear in the choirs dedicated to the patron of the customer. The interior space is simplified, acquiring a chamber character. Construction technology is also changing. Novgorod residents are increasingly using local limestone slabs, sandwiching them with rows of bricks to level them, which has led to a change in the design of the facades. The Novgorod slab is easily destroyed (eroded) over time. To prevent this, the surfaces of the walls began to be rubbed with mortar, leaving only the brick areas exposed. Decorative details that arose in the conditions of brickwork - belts, multi-broken openings, semi-columns on blades - were difficult to make from slabs, and they were abandoned. A flat reinforcing belt on a drum under the head, several niches, a decorative cross inserted into the wall masonry - that’s all that is included in the decoration of the facade. With the widespread use of slabs, it was difficult to achieve the same clarity and geometric lines as when building with brick or dense cut limestone. This natural feature in Novgorod was perceived not as a drawback, but, on the contrary, as a specific aesthetic device. The unevenness of the planes, the beveled corners, and the somewhat crumpled shape of the arches give the buildings a characteristic plasticity. The simplicity and modesty of Novgorod churches in the second half of the 12th century reflects the well-known democratism of architecture.

Typical for this time are the St. George (second half of the 12th century, ill. 17) and the Assumption churches in Staraya Ladoga. They are simple in composition; the facades are devoid of any decoration and are divided into three fields by flat blades. The Assumption Church originally had three porches. There are no internal blades, the pillars are not cross-shaped, but square in plan. Thanks to this, the interior has a clear configuration and is easy to see. The choirs occupy the western third of the church, with their corner divisions resting on vaults, and the middle part is an open balcony on wooden beams. The choir is reached by a narrow staircase running through the thickness of the western wall. The interiors were originally entirely frescoed; a significant number of them have been preserved in the St. George Church.

This type includes the Church of Cyril, preserved in its lower part or uncovered by excavations, the Church of the Annunciation near the village of Arkazhi near Novgorod, two more churches in Staraya Ladoga, the Church of the Savior in Staraya Russa, Dmitry Solunsky in Pskov and others.

20. Panteleimone Church near Galich. Turn of the XII-XIII centuries. Apse
21. Church of the Savior-Nereditsa near Novgorod. 1198
22. Church of Panteleimon near Galich. Turn of the XII-XIII centuries.

Of particular importance among the monuments of this type was the Church of the Savior-Nereditsa near Novgorod (1198), destroyed by the Nazis and now restored (ill. 21). This small temple amazed with its power and monumentality. Its interior space, immersed in twilight, seemed squeezed by thick walls, heavy and massive pillars, and a log choir hanging overhead. In the interior of the church, ancient painting was almost entirely preserved (Fig. 23). The value of the compositions, and especially the entire complex, was enormous - a rare example of picturesque interior decoration of the 12th century.

The six-pillar type of temples, less popular at this time in Novgorod architecture, is represented by the three-domed cathedral of the Ivanovo Monastery in Pskov, which was then part of the Novgorod land. At two similar churches in Novgorod - the Church of Ivan on Opoki (1127) and the Assumption on Torg (1135) - only the lower parts of the walls survived.

A special option is the Spaso-Preobrazhensky Cathedral of the Mirozhsky Monastery in Pskov, built in the middle of the 12th century. It is unusual in composition for Russian architecture. The central cruciform space is clearly expressed in the configuration of the volume thanks to the sharply lowered side apses and western corner divisions. The building is completed by a massive dome on an unusually wide drum. Apparently, the construction was led not by a Russian, but by a Byzantine architect. At the same time, in terms of construction technology, the monument does not differ from other Novgorod and Pskov churches of this time; Apparently, it was built by local craftsmen. The cathedral has preserved magnificent fresco paintings. In addition to this structure, another building was carried out by order of the Novgorod bishop Nifont, repeating the design of the Mirozh Cathedral: the Church of Clement in Staraya Ladoga, revealed by excavations. Both temples had some influence on the development of Novgorod and Pskov architecture, but did not make significant changes to it. The Greek current, which Nifont tried to infuse into Novgorod architecture, could not shake the local traditions that had been firmly established by that time.
The architecture of the Galician land, which lay on the southwestern borders of Rus', in the Dniester region, took a completely different path. Here, in the first quarter of the 12th century, in the village of Peremyshlya, the Church of John the Baptist was built, the first to be built from hewn stone. Obviously, the Galician land at that time did not yet have its own architects, and new construction equipment was borrowed from neighboring Poland. If we take into account that the Prince of Przemysl Volodar, as a rule, was at enmity with Kiev, it becomes clear why they had to turn to Poland for craftsmen to organize monumental construction. The remains of this temple have been discovered by Polish archaeologists. It turned out that, despite the Romanesque technique, the type of Przemysl temple was not Romanesque, but a typically Russian four-pillar cross-domed building.

In the middle of the 12th century, in the capital city of Galich, picturesquely located on a high plateau above the Lukva River, a large temple was built - the Assumption Cathedral. Its walls on the inner and outer surfaces were made of blocks of well-hewn limestone, and the space between them was filled with broken stone and lime mortar. The temple had a profiled base and flat blades. Its decoration uses bas-relief sculpture. Both the masonry technique and the decoration are directly related to Romanesque architecture. At the same time, according to the plan, it is a four-pillar cross-domed church, typical for Russian architecture of the 12th century, surrounded on three sides by a gallery, with a passage to the choir located in the thickness of the western wall. Thus, in the middle of the 12th century, Galich already had its own cadre of craftsmen. They combined the experience of Romanesque and Kyiv architecture and had sufficient skill for independent creativity.
Unfortunately, the monuments of Galician architecture have not survived; only a small part of them is known from archaeological excavations. Written sources testify to large construction in the Galician land. The chronicle tells about the princely palace in Galich in the mid-12th century, which consisted of a two-story residential building, a transition from the second floor to the choir of the court church and a staircase tower. The entire ensemble, except for the temple, was probably made of wood.
The only surviving monument of Galician architecture is the Church of Panteleimon near Galich (the turn of the 12th and 13th centuries). This is a typical four-pillar temple, three-apse, probably single-domed (Fig. 20, 22). There are no Romanesque elements in its plan, but they are clearly expressed in such details as a profiled plinth, thin apse columns with bases and carved capitals, and carved portals. Particularly interesting is the western portal, which belongs to the promising type.

Stone structures were also erected in other cities of the principality (Zvenigorod, Vasilev), which indicates the large number of Galician architects. The originality of forms and the wide scope of construction determine the outstanding significance of the Galician school in the history of Russian architecture.

One of the most prominent Russian architectural schools of the 12th - first half of the 13th centuries was the Vladimir-Suzdal school. From the beginning to the end of its development, it is connected with the lofty idea of ​​​​unifying the Russian lands, put forward by the Vladimir princes and supported by powerful social forces - townspeople interested in overcoming feudal fragmentation, a new social stratum - the nobility and the church.

The beginning of monumental construction in the northeast is associated with the creation under Vladimir Monomakh at the turn of the 11th-12th centuries of the cathedral in Suzdal, known only from excavations. It was a six-pillar brick building, apparently erected by Russian craftsmen from the south. However, in the future the Kiev tradition did not develop here. By the middle of the 12th century, the time of Yuri Dolgoruky, there are single-domed four-pillar churches made of hewn white stone in Pereslavl-Zalessky, Yuryev-Polsky, in the princely residence of Kideksha near Suzdal and at the princely court in Vladimir. The Transfiguration Cathedral in Pereslavl-Zalessky (1152, ill. 18) has been completely preserved, and the church in Kideksha for the most part. The buildings of that time are almost devoid of decorative elements; only a belt of arcature with a curb runs along the facades and the upper part of the apses, emphasizing the harsh power of the smooth white walls. A heavy head reinforces the impression of irresistible physical strength. The temples had choirs and were connected by a passage with the feudal lord's palace. These first buildings in the Suzdal region were apparently built by invited Galician architects.

Under Andrei Bogolyubsky, architecture is experiencing rapid flowering. The capital is moved to Vladimir. The city, beautifully located on the high bank of the Klyazma, in the 50s - 60s of the 12th century was quickly built up with new buildings, surrounded by mighty ramparts with wooden walls and white stone gate towers. Of these, the Golden Gate (1164) with a huge ceremonial passage arch, above which the gate church towered, has been preserved. The gate was both the strongest point of defense and a triumphal arch.

Intensive construction indicates the formation of numerous experienced builders in Vladimir. They adopted the traditions of Galician architecture, quickly reworked them and further developed them completely independently. At the same time, the direct participation of Romanesque architects is felt in the monuments of Vladimir architecture of this time. There is information that Andrei Bogolyubsky turned to Emperor Frederick Barbarossa for craftsmen. However, the participation of Romanesque architects does not transform Vladimir-Suzdal architecture into a variant of the Romanesque style. Romanesque features appeared mainly in details and carved decoration, while all-Russian forms, dating back to Kyiv traditions, are noticeable in plans, compositions of volumes, and design. The features gravitating from different sources are so organically fused that they create a completely original architecture that clearly characterizes the culture of one of the strongest Russian principalities of this era.

The largest building of Andrei Bogolyubsky's time is the Assumption Cathedral in Vladimir (1158-1161). Placed in the center of the city on the high edge of the coastal plateau, it became the main link of a magnificent ensemble. Although after the fire of 1185 the cathedral was rebuilt on three sides, received a new altar and additional four corner domes, its original appearance is clear. The slender proportions and height of the six-pillar temple are emphasized by exquisite decor: an arcature-columnar belt covers the walls, the blades are complicated by thin half-columns with lush foliate capitals. The columns of the wide perspective portals had carved capitals, and some architectural details were framed with gilded copper; the helmet of the twelve-window drum of the head sparkled with gold. The interior was equally spectacular, well lit and richly decorated with precious utensils. The majestic and solemn Assumption Cathedral figuratively affirmed the idea of ​​​​the primacy of the Vladimir-Suzdal land, turning its capital into the church and political center of Rus'.

The best creation of Vladimir masters, the Church of the Intercession on the Nerl (1165, ill. 24, 25) is one of the greatest masterpieces of ancient Russian and world architecture. It is made using magnificent white stone technique. Complexly profiled pilasters with light semi-columns emphasize the upward movement of the composition of the elegant temple, giving it a plastic, almost sculptural character. An arcature-columnar belt, the thin columns of which rest on carved brackets, runs along all the facades and under the apse cornice. Above the arcature-columnar belt, the walls are decorated with reliefs, and luscious carvings decorate the perspective portals. In general, the image of the temple is very poetic, permeated with a feeling of lightness and bright harmony. It is no coincidence that they talk about the musical associations that the Church of the Intercession on the Nerl gives rise to.
However, the original composition of the temple was more complex. Excavations near its walls showed that the creators of this masterpiece were solving a very difficult task: they had to erect a temple at the confluence of the Nerl into the Klyazma as a solemn monument that marked the arrival of ships sailing from below along the Klyazma at the princely residence - the neighboring Bogolyubovsky Castle. The place designated by the prince for construction was a low-lying floodplain and was filled with water during high water. Therefore, having laid the foundation on dense continental clay, the architects placed on it a kind of pedestal about four meters high made of cut stone, which exactly corresponded to the plan of the church. At the same time as the masonry, earth was added, thereby creating an artificial hill, which was then lined with stone slabs. The church stood on it. It seemed as if the earth itself was lifting her to the sky. The temple was surrounded on three sides by an arcade gallery, in the corner part of which there was a staircase to the choir. Only the foundation of the gallery has been preserved, and the original appearance of the building as a whole can only be restored tentatively.

The princely castle - Bogolyubov-city was built in 1158-1165 on the high bank of the Klyazma, near the mouth of the Nerl. It was surrounded by earthen ramparts with white stone walls. Only one staircase tower with a transition to the choir of the cathedral has survived. The foundations of the walls of the latter, as well as the remains of other parts of the ensemble, have been uncovered by excavations.

The palace ensemble was located on a square paved with white stone slabs. Its center was the cathedral, connected by a passage with a staircase tower, from which a white stone passage also led to the second floor of the palace. To the south of the cathedral through the second tower and passages leading to the fortress wall. Under the passages there were arched passages - passages. All these parts were united by an arcature- -o-(column belt into a single picturesque and solemn whole. The facades were decorated with bas-reliefs, fresco paintings, some parts were upholstered in gilded copper. The tall and slender palace cathedral had round pillars-columns, unusual for ancient Russian architecture, painted under white marble and completed with huge gilded foliate capitals. The floor of the choir was covered with majolica tiles, and in the temple itself there were copper plates, sealed with tin and shining like gold. According to the chronicle, there were many precious utensils in the temple. In front of the cathedral on the square stood a unique in Russian architecture, an eight-column ciborium (canopy) with a gilded tent over a white stone holy bowl.

The construction of the time of Vsevolod III marks a further brilliant rise of Vladimir-Suzdal architecture. Two trends arise in architecture: the episcopal one, which has a negative attitude towards the development of the sculptural decoration of churches and is committed to the severity of their appearance, and the princely one, which makes extensive use of plastic arts.

The largest monument of the first movement was the Vladimir Assumption Cathedral after its construction in 1185-1189. The facades are almost devoid of sculptures; only a few carved stones were transferred to them from the walls of the old cathedral. The building actually became a new, more grandiose structure; its volume acquired a stepped structure; since the galleries surrounding the old building were somewhat lowered. Four new chapters were placed on the corners, forming a solemn five-domed structure. The architectural image of the new cathedral revealed even more clearly the idea of ​​strength and royal grandeur, which permeates all the art of the time of the mighty “autocracy” Vsevolod.

26. Sculptural decor of the Demetrievsky Cathedral in Vladimir. 1194-1197. Detail
24. Church of the Intercession on the Nerl.
25. Sculptural decoration of the Church of the Intercession on the Nerl. 1165. Detail

The same idea - the apotheosis of power and might of the Vladimir land - is expressed with greater force in the Demetrius Cathedral in Vladimir (1194-1197, ill. 26, 27). Initially, like the cathedral in Bogolyubovo, the temple was part of the palace ensemble, had staircase towers protruding from the western corners and was connected by passages with the palace buildings. The cathedral belonged to the usual type of single-domed, four-pillar temples, but the architects filled this traditional design with new content. The solemn pomp and representativeness of the temple are emphasized by the majestic rhythm of its divisions and especially enhanced by the richest carved decoration. Dmitrievsky Cathedral most clearly characterizes the second trend of Vladimir architecture, sharply different from episcopal construction by the love for the magnificent carved decoration of buildings.

In the first half of the 13th century, the Vladimir principality was divided into a number of appanage principalities. In architecture, two main lines are defined: Rostov-Yaroslavl, where construction is carried out both from stone and plinth brick, and Suzdal-Nizhny Novgorod, developing the traditions of white stone construction and decorative sculpture. The second group includes the cathedrals of the Nativity of the Virgin in Suzdal (1222-1225) and St. George in Yuryev-Polsky (1230-1234).

The Cathedral of the Nativity of the Virgin Mary has not been completely preserved. After destruction, its upper part was completely rebuilt from brick in the 16th century. This large six-pillar temple with three porches initially ended with three domes. Its creators freely treated the requirements of constructive logic in the decoration of facades, crossing wickerwork with ribbon and carved stones across the blades, covering the columns of the portals with carvings and breaking them with beads. In the masonry they used an uneven slab, against the background of which the white stone blades and rods, the carved white stone belt and reliefs stand out especially clearly. The luxurious copper doors of the cathedral, painted in gold, reflect the love of ornamentation. The interior fresco painting also becomes more flowery and ornamental. The temple is losing its ceremonial ceremonial presence; its appearance is picturesque and cheerful.

These tendencies close to folk culture reach full development in the St. George Cathedral in Yuryev-Polsky (ill. 28). After reconstruction in the 15th century, its appearance was distorted and its decorative system was damaged. Initially, the cathedral was much taller and slimmer. Only the lower half of the building has been preserved without significant changes. This is a four-pillar temple with three porches open inward. Its bright interior, which has no choirs, is free and airy. The outside of the building was covered with carvings from top to bottom, from the base to the basement. A carpet floral pattern, skillfully applied to the surface of the wall, covers the lower part of the building with a transparent mesh, entwines the pilasters and portals. The arcature-columnar belt is interpreted as a wide ornamental ribbon. The cathedral's zakomars, as well as the archivolts (arched ends) of the portals, acquire a keel-shaped outline. Against the background of a flat carpet pattern, images of animals and monsters, executed in high relief, acquire a folkloric coloring, stand out. The zakomars housed large high-relief compositions on Christian themes. Religious-political and folk-fairy tale themes are intertwined in the unique carved decoration of the cathedral, a kind of hymn to the Vladimir land.
This is the rapid and brilliant path traversed by Vladimir-Suzdal architecture in less than a century.

In the 12th century, along with others, the Polotsk architectural school played a major role, the monuments of which, unfortunately, for the most part did not survive.

It is characteristic that they were erected in the old way, as they were built in the 11th century, from plinth “with a hidden row” (for example, the buildings of the Belchitsky and Slaso-Euphrosyne monasteries in Polotsk). This, apparently, was explained by the desire to revive the features of the Polotsk St. Sophia Cathedral, which by this time had become, as it were, a symbol of the independence of the Polotsk region. It is possible that the primordial enmity with the Principality of Kyiv was the reason for the rejection of the new system of row brickwork developed by Kyiv builders. In the same 12th century, another construction technique was used in Polotsk architecture - stone-brick masonry, in which blocks of cut stone alternate with rows of plinth (Church of the Annunciation in Vitebsk). This type of masonry is well known in Byzantium and the Balkans, but is not found anywhere else in Russian architecture.

Polotsk architecture is also interesting due to its new compositional solutions. Thus, the cathedral of the Belchitsa Monastery, known from excavations, represented an original version of a six-pillar temple with three porches. Its dome rested not on the eastern pairs of pillars, but on the western ones, that is, it was shifted one division further west than usual, which, in combination with the vestibules, emphasized the centricity of the composition. Polotsk buildings of the 12th century, unlike those in Kyiv, have flat outer blades.

In addition to architectural schools associated with large Russian principalities and represented by many monuments, a small but completely independent Grodno school emerged in the 12th century. The monuments of ancient Grodno on the Neman (in Old Russian - the city of Goroden) are closest to the buildings of Kyiv and Volyn: they were built of brick using the technique of equal-layer masonry. However, here the brick facades were uniquely and effectively decorated with inserted blocks of polished stone and colored majolica, from the figured tiles of which images of crosses and simple geometric figures were made.

Such is the wide range of architectural schools of Rus' in the 12th century.
‘
By the end of the 12th century, Russian architecture entered a new stage of its development. The first signs of this appear in the middle of the 12th century.

Thus, new trends have already clearly emerged, for example, in the Cathedral of the Spaso-Euphrosyne Monastery in Polotsk, built by the architect John in the middle of the 12th century. The composition of the six-pillar temple is imbued with the desire to overcome the static nature of the cross-domed volume. The western part of the building is lowered, as is the strongly protruding apse corresponding to it from the east. The central quadrangle rising above them ends with a raised pedestal supporting the drum and the head, having the shape of a three-lobed arch on the side of each façade. The slender stepped silhouette of the building and its tower-like top create a new architectural image of the temple, imbued with strength and dynamics.
Judging by the plan, the Boris and Gleb Cathedral of the Belchitsa Monastery had a similar tower-like composition, apparently built by the same architect John. By the end of the 12th century, buildings with an even more pronounced tower-like volume structure appeared in Polotsk architecture. This is the church revealed by excavations in Polotsk Detinets. It is as centric as possible: it was adjoined on three sides by vestibules, and on the east by one large apse. The side apses, rectangular in their outer outline, were apparently sharply lowered, and the northern and southern porches also had their own independent apses. All this as a whole created a complex, vertically directed volume.

The artistic discovery of the Polotsk architects was immediately picked up in other lands, and above all in Smolensk. The Church of the Archangel Michael (Svirskaya), built there around 1190, is very close in plan to the Church in Detinets of Polotsk. However, Smolensk craftsmen developed these techniques: they opened the porches inside the temple, thereby ensuring the unity of its interior, and on the outside they complicated the multi-part pilasters, complementing them with a thin semi-colony. The great height of the main volume is emphasized by the porches subordinate to it and the high, strongly protruding apse. The dynamics of the complex masses of the building are enhanced by a large number of verticals created by complexly profiled beam pilasters. The three-lobed completion of the facades reflects the quarter-circle vaults covering the corners of the building, the head drum is raised on a special pedestal. The energetic and strong upward movement, expressed in the external appearance, is also noticeable in the free, high, choirless interior space of the temple. Instead of choirs, the second floors of the vestibules were intended for the prince and his retinue, forming a kind of lodges open to the inside of the temple. The Church of the Archangel Michael delighted contemporaries with the beauty and richness of its interior decoration; the chronicle noted the unusualness of this temple “in a midnight country.”

However, it was not the only monument of this type in Smolensk. The Church of the Trinity Monastery, discovered by excavations, at the mouth of the Klovka River is very close to Mikhailovskaya in terms of plan and, apparently, composition. The profiling of its pilasters is even somewhat more complicated.

The new trend also affected buildings that had a more conventional plan; among them there are large six-pillar cathedrals and very small four-pillar churches. As a rule, they do not have vestibules, but almost all of them are surrounded by galleries, creating a tiered volume. Their distinctive feature: the central apse is large and semi
round, and the side ones are smaller and have a rectilinear outline on the outside. The fact that such temples had a tower-like composition is evidenced by complexly profiled pilasters; Such pilasters, forming whole bunches of vertical divisions on the facades, could only make sense if they wanted to give the building a dynamic composition, create the impression of height and takeoff.

Along with such monuments, churches of a different type were built in Smolensk at that time: all three apses were flat and rectilinear on the outside. The largest monument of this group is the Cathedral on Protok, during the excavations of which many fragments of fresco paintings were found and taken to the museum.

At the turn of the 12th and 13th centuries, Smolensk became one of the leading architectural centers of Rus', surpassing even Kyiv and Novgorod in the number of monumental buildings erected. Naturally, Smolensk masters were invited to other Russian lands. Undoubtedly, they erected the Spassky Cathedral in the capital of the Ryazan temple - Old Ryazan, known from the results of archaeological excavations. The Church of Paraskeva Pyatnitsa in Novgorod (1207), which is similar in composition to the Smolensk Church of the Archangel Michael, is also associated with the work of Smolensk masters. Three-lobed curves that completed the facades of the high quadrangle, three slightly lowered in relation to the main volume of the vestibule, and very large beam pilasters gave the composition of the Church of Paraskeva Pyatnitsa dynamism. Obviously, with the participation of Smolensk architects, at the very end of the 12th century, the main temple of Pskov, the Trinity Cathedral, was erected. Even in Kyiv, on Voznesensky, the remains of a small four-pillar church with rectangular side apses and beam pilasters, also apparently built by a Smolensk architect, were excavated from the start.

Of course, Kyiv at the turn of the 12th and 13th centuries had its own masters. Moreover, it was at this time that several churches of exceptional significance were erected here and in Chernigov. One of these masterpieces is the Church of Friday in Chernigov (ill. 29). Despite the traditional plan, the four-pillar temple with three apses is completely unusual in appearance. Complex beam pilasters draw the eye to the completion of the building, striking with the originality of its constructive and artistic design. The Novagor architect completely changed the vault system: he not only covered the corners with quarter-circle vaults, but also greatly raised the girth arches supporting the drum. Thus, here, for the first time in Russian architecture, a system of arches rising stepwise towards the center was used: the dynamic growth of the top, the upward thrust of the building received a natural constructive basis. The facades ended with a three-lobed curve corresponding to the design of the vaults, and stepped arches formed the basis of the second tier of zakomari. The foot of the slender drum was surrounded by decorative zakomars - kokoshniks. The rapid upward movement was further emphasized by the pointed outline of the mosquitoes. The facades of the temple are very elegant: the master lovingly decorated them with a simple but elegant lattice brick belt and meander ribbons.

The Church of Vasily in Ovruch (90s of the 12th century) belongs to the same group. The obvious proximity of this monument to the Church of Friday in Chernigov suggests that initially its vaults were also stepped, and the composition of the volume as a whole was not static, but dynamic. The facades are decorated, like the monuments of Grodno, with decorative inserts in the form of large boulders, and two round staircase towers adjoined the corners of the western facade. The dome was once covered with gilded copper. The Church of Vasily is the palace temple of Prince Rurik Rostislavich, who, according to the chronicler, had “an insatiable love for buildings.” It is almost certain that its author was the favorite master of the prince, Peter Milone, in whose work there is an enthusiastic mention in the chronicle comparing Milonega with the biblical architect Veselil. It is very likely that the same Miloneg built both the Chernigov Church of Friday and the Church of the Apostles in Belgorod, which was uncovered by excavations, and was distinguished by its particularly luxurious interior decoration.

Archaeological splits unusually expanded our knowledge of ancient Russian architecture and, in particular, showed that the variety of types and stylistic shades in the architecture of Southern Rus' at that time was very great. Thus, in Novgorod-Seversky a church was opened that had a completely special “Gothic” profile of pilasters, not found in either Kyiv or Smolensk churches. The church excavated in Putivl had, like Byzantine and Balkan churches, additional apses on the northern and southern sides of the building.

The process of differentiation of Russian architecture continued at the turn of the 12th and 13th centuries, creating new and new local variants. At the same time, it is clear that this diversity of creative thought does not break the ties between Russian architectural schools. Throughout the 12th century, architects did not limit themselves to working within their principality: Galician masters built in Vladimir, Chernigov in Ryazan and Smolensk, Smolensk in Novgorod, Ryazan and Kiev. The mutual exchange of technical and artistic experience contributed to the rapid flowering of architecture and the spread of a new direction at the turn of the 12th and 13th centuries, which apparently embraced almost all Russian architectural schools. Even in Vladimir-Suzdal architecture, later monuments - the Cathedral of the Nativity of the Virgin in Suzdal and especially St. George's Cathedral in Yuryev-Polsky - according to all data, had a tower-like composition of completion and, probably, a stepwise rising system of vaults.

Thus, at the end of the 12th century, in the architecture of various Russian lands, general, or more precisely, all-Russian development trends were increasingly manifested. Kyiv traditions are being revised almost everywhere, the tower-like appearance and dynamics of the composition are evident, the interior is subordinate to the external appearance of the building, the facades are richly decorated. The compositional idea of ​​temples and their artistic image were more or less similar everywhere, although in each architectural school of Rus' they were solved in their own local forms.

What is the reason for the emergence of new artistic forms in Russian architecture at the end of the 12th century? Apparently, the decisive factor was the influence of urban culture, the growth and strengthening of cities, and the economic strengthening of towns. These conditions caused special attention to the architectural appearance of cities, in which the bright silhouette of temples and the decorative richness of their facades were supposed to play an important, accentuating role. The commonality of development trends shows that in Russian architecture there was clearly making its way, albeit still weak, but a strengthening and winning interregional movement, containing the features of an all-Russian architectural style, to which the future belonged. With good reason we can talk about the beginning of the crystallization of all-Russian national characteristics of the art of construction.

At this high level, the rapid development of Russian architecture was interrupted by the Mongol-Tatar invasion. .

freedom-loving 3. “To Chaadaev”

D) the purpose of the poet and poetry 4. “Prophet”

5. “I remember a wonderful moment”

6. “Winter Morning”

11. Name the artistic technique:

We wait with languid hope

Holy moments of freedom

How a young lover waits

Minutes of a faithful date ___________________________________

12. Which poem are the previous lines from?________________________________

13. Comment on the lines:

You are the king: live alone. On the road to freedom

Go where your free mind takes you.

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

14. Determine the artistic technique of the highlighted passage, write down its name:

Here wild nobility, without feeling, without law______________________________________

Assigned yourself with a violent vine_______________________________________________

And labor, and property, and the time of the farmer.

15. Who are the lines dedicated to?

My first friend, my priceless friend!

And I blessed fate when my yard is secluded,

Covered in sad snow,

Your bell rang. __________________________

16. Identify artistic techniques in this passage (line by line):

Fly, ship, carry me to the distant limits 1___________________________

By the terrible whim of the deceptive seas, 2________________________________

But not to the sad shores

Misty Homeland my...

Make noise, make noise, obedient sail...3_____________________________________________

17. What is the main idea of ​​the poem “Anchar”?

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

18. Match the names of women and the names of articles dedicated to them:

A) “I remember a wonderful moment” 1. A.P. Kern

B) “Madonna” 2. N.N. Goncharova

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

20. What miraculous monument is mentioned in the poem of the same name?

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

21. Which 2 historical figures are mentioned in the article “To the Sea”:

_____________________________________________________________________________

22. Determine the size of the poem:

A/The clouds are above me again

Gathered in silence

Rock of envious misfortune

Threatens me again.______________________________

Will I see, oh friends, the unoppressed people

And slavery, which fell due to the king’s mania..._________________________________

23. What type of literature does lyric poetry belong to? _________________

24. Provide the definition of lyrics:

1) A type of literature in which the artistic world of the work reflects the internal experiences of the lyrical hero

2) Emotional perception by the narrator or lyrical hero of what is being described

25. What “good feelings” did A.S. Pushkin “awaken” in his lyrics?

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Nekrasov's opus of the year title

4) why are the priest and the landowner unhappy?

5) Grisha of goodwill

6) something scattered at one end to the landowner, the other to the man, what was it about (I don’t remember the beginning of the quote)

7) Who Lives Well in Rus' (KNRZHH) year, main question

8) innovation nekr

9) the main themes of the poems

11) lyrical hero Nekr

12)ideal necr hero. why does it change?

13) songs prevented me from being a poet... meaning

14) why are they on the road in KNRZHH, what does this symbolize?

15) what does the song in KNZHH symbolize?

2. Describe sentimentalism as a literary movement.
3. Describe realism as a literary phenomenon.
4. Describe romanticism as a literary phenomenon.
5. Biographical information about A. S. Pushkin. Main themes of creativity.
6. The storyline of Pushkin’s poem “The Bronze Horseman”.
7. The story of Evgeny from Pushkin’s poem “The Bronze Horseman”
8. The image of the city of St. Petersburg in Pushkin’s poem “The Bronze Horseman”.
9. The image of Peter the Great in Pushkin’s poem “The Bronze Horseman”.
10. Life and work of M.Yu. Lermontov. Main themes of creativity.

11.The life and work of N.V. Gogol. The main themes of the writer's work.

12. Life and work of A.N. Ostrovsky. Main themes of creativity. The history of the creation of Ostrovsky's play "The Thunderstorm".
13. Morals of the city of Kalinov. Images of Dikiy and Kabanova.
14. The image of Katerina Kabanova in Ostrovsky’s play “The Thunderstorm”. My attitude to Katerina’s action.
15. The meaning of the title of Ostrovsky’s poem “The Thunderstorm”.
16. The story of Larisa in Ostrovsky’s play “Dowry”.
17. Life and work of I.S. Turgenev. The history of the creation of the novel “Fathers and Sons.”
18. Bazarov is the main character of Turgenev’s novel “Fathers and Sons.” Nihilism as a social phenomenon of the 19th century.
19. Test of love in Turgenev’s novel “Fathers and Sons.”
20. Bazarov and parents. Characteristics of Bazarov's parents.
21.Two generations in Turgenev’s novel “Fathers and Sons.” Disputes in the novel.
22. The meaning of the title of Turgenev’s novel “Fathers and Sons.”
23. Life and work of I. A. Goncharov. Describe the image of Oblomov.
24. Two antipodes in Goncharov’s novel “Oblomov”. Oblomov and Stolz.

25. Life and work of F. I. Tyutchev. The main themes of the poet's work.

26. Life and work of A.K. Tolstoy. Main themes of creativity.

27. Life and work of A. A. Fet. The main themes of the poet's work.

I Literature of the 19th century.
1. Name the literary trends of the 19th century.
2. What events in world and Russian history created the preconditions
for the emergence of romanticism in Russia?
3. Name the founders of Russian romanticism.
4. Who stood at the origins of Russian realism?
5. Name the main literary movement of the second half of the 19th century
century.
6. What task did A.N. Ostrovsky set for himself in the play “The Thunderstorm”?
7. Express the philosophy of the writer A.N. Ostrovsky as an example
plays "The Thunderstorm".
8. What task did I.S. set for himself? Turgenev in the novel “Fathers and
children"?
9. Why is the novel by I.S. Critics called Turgenev's "Fathers and Sons"
anti-noble?
10.Express the main ideas of the novel by F.M. Dostoevsky "Crime and
punishment".
11.Formulate the basic principles of F.M.’s philosophy. Dostoevsky and
the main character of the novel, Rodion Raskolnikov.
12. Why, in your opinion, was the novel “War and Peace” criticized?
called “an encyclopedia of Russian life”?
13.What distinguishes the positive heroes of L.N. Tolstoy’s novel “War and
world"?
14.Name the stages of spiritual evolution of one of the characters in the novel: Andrei
Bolkonsky, Pierre Bezukhov, Natasha Rostova.
15.What do the destinies of Andrei Bolkonsky and Pierre Bezukhov have in common?
II Literature of the 20th century.
1. What phenomena of social life in Russia influenced the development
literature of the 20th century?
2. What name did the literature of the turn of the 19th – beginning of the 20th centuries receive?
3. What are the main literary movements of this time?
4. What is the philosophy of I. Bunin’s story “Cold Autumn”?
5. What unites the stories of I. Bunin “Cold Autumn” and A.
Kuprin “Garnet Bracelet”?
6. “What you believe in, that is.” Which hero of M. Gorky's work
do these words belong? Explain his philosophy.
7. What is Satin’s role in the play “At the Bottom”?
8. The image of the civil war in M. Sholokhov’s stories “Birthmark”
and "Food Commissioner".
9. What are the features of the Russian character in the story by M. Sholokhov
"The Fate of Man"?
10.What kind of village did you see in A.I.’s story? Solzhenitsyn "Matryonin"
yard"?
11.What philosophical and moral problems does the author raise in
story?
12.Which plot episode is the climax in the story “Matryonin”
yard"?
13. What unites the characters of Andrei Sokolov (“The Fate of a Man”) and
Matryona Vasilievna (“Matryonin’s Dvor”)?
14. Which Russian writer was awarded the Nobel Prize for his contribution to
world literature?

whoever can (help a lot) this is an internal exam in literature 1. What is the tragedy of the love of Zheltkov, the hero of Kuprin’s story “The Garnet Bracelet”?
2. Prove that for the hero of Kuprin’s story “The Garnet Bracelet,” love is the highest value of the world.
3. Show the richness of the spiritual world of the heroine of Kuprin’s story “Olesya”.
4. Prove by giving examples from Kuprin’s works that his favorite hero is a young man, gentle, intelligent, conscientious, ardently sympathetic to his “little brother” and at the same time weak-willed, tragically subject to the forces of environment and circumstances.
5. Why is the era of poets of the early 20th century characterized as the “Silver Age” of Russian poetry? What are its fundamental differences from the “golden age”?
6. What three pieces of advice does the lyrical hero of the poem V.Ya. give to the young poet? Bryusov "To the Young Poet"? Do you agree with his position? What, in your opinion, should a true poet be? Read the poem by heart.
7. Tell us what you know about Bryusov, the translator. Name its main translations. What languages ​​are they used in?
8. How does Balmont’s lyrics show interest in ancient Slavic folklore? What images arise? Analyze the poems “Evil Spells” and “Firebird”.
9. What picture does Balmont paint in the poem “First Love”? Tell us about your perception of this poem.
10. Describe the work of early Mayakovsky. What are its main specific features? Read one poem from this period by heart.
11. “Freedom is the most beautiful thing in life, for the sake of it a person should be ready to sacrifice everything, even his life.” Confirm Gorky’s words with examples from his stories “Makar Chudra” and “Old Woman Izergil”.
12. Prove that even a crazy but extraordinary step, according to Gorky, will remain in people’s memory. Give examples from “The Song of the Falcon”, “The Song of the Petrel”, “The Legend of Marco”.
13. What is the meaning of the title of the play “At the Bottom”? Explain its symbolic meaning.
14. Who is Blok’s cycle of poems “Poems about a Beautiful Lady” dedicated to? What was it written for? Analyze 3 poems from this collection. Read one by heart.
15. How is the theme of the House revealed in Bulgakov’s novel “The White Guard”? What symbolic meaning does the word “house” have for Bulgakov?
16. What philosophical problems are raised in Bulgakov’s novel “The Master and Margarita”?
17. Show the inextricability of the connection between Tsvetaeva’s fate and creativity and Moscow. Analyze the cycle “Poems about Moscow”. Read one poem by heart.
18. Describe the image of the lyrical heroine of the poem “Requiem”.
19. Describe the Cossack life depicted by Sholokhov. Show the peculiarities of Cossack speech. How they help the writer convey the vitality of the setting. How does a writer depict the life of a village?
20. Describe the family structure of the Melekhovs, Korshunovs, Astakhovs. Make a comparative description.
21. How is the First World War depicted in the novel “Quiet Don”?
22. Compare Aksinya and Natalya, explain Gregory’s feelings for each of them. What is the significance of the heroines' names? Why do they both die?
23. What is the meaning of the title of Sholokhov’s story “The Fate of a Man”?
24. Give a detailed description of military prose and poetry. Analyze 2 works.
25. Give a detailed description of urban prose. Analyze 2 works.

Content:

The role of architectural monuments with which planet Earth is rich is incredibly enormous. Thanks to ancient buildings, you can penetrate and feel the spirit of an era long past. After all, there is nothing more meaningful than walking along ancient streets made of stone, which has been worn away by the touch of the feet of generations who walked here a long time ago.

The Russian land is also rich in architectural monuments. This is evidence of the prosperity of cities and ordinary settlements thousands of years ago. The ancestors of today's generations lived here, who fought for freedom and for the prosperity of their homes. People often argue about the patriotism of Russians, that is, Russians, Ukrainians, Tatars, Belarusians, and representatives of other nationalities who have lived and are now living on this land.

Those who argue cannot understand what makes a Russian sacrifice himself for the freedom and lives of others. Where does patriotism begin? And it begins with ancient church churches, with fortresses half-overgrown with grass, with buildings and structures in which Pushkin and Dostoevsky, Mussorgsky and Tchaikovsky created their works, where Rublev and his students painted icons, where the first decrees that strengthened Russia were born, Ivan the Terrible and Peter I.

It turns out that patriotism begins where a Russian was born, where he lived, grew grain, built castles and temples, erected fortress walls, where he shed his blood for freedom and independence. Therefore, we have to state with regret the facts of the disgraceful attitude towards the architectural monuments of Rus', which were erected at the dawn of their statehood. This attitude towards architectural monuments kills patriotism.

There are many monuments in Rus'. They are world famous in Moscow, St. Petersburg, Kyiv. They are often written about, the attention of the state, church, and public organizations is drawn to them. But there are architectural monuments that were erected in other cities and even small villages in distant years. The general public knows almost nothing about them. But their role in instilling love for their homeland among Russians is immeasurably high.

By decree of Andrei Bogolyubsky in 1165, between the Klyazma and Nerlya rivers in the Vladimir region, a church temple was erected in memory of the prince’s son who died at the hands of the Bulgars. The church has one dome, but it was built of white stone, which was a novelty at that time. In those days, the main building material was wood. But wooden buildings were often destroyed by fires and were unstable in the face of enemy attacks.

Although the temple was built in memory of the son of Andrei Bogolyubsky, it was dedicated to the church holiday of the Intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary. This is the first such monument and very important, since Orthodoxy in Rus' was just being established.

The design of the temple seems very simple. Its main components are four pillars, three apses, and a cruciform dome. The church has one chapter. But it is created in such proportions that from a distance it appears to be floating above the earth. This church temple is rightfully included in the list of UNESCO World Heritage Sites.

Tithe Church

The Church of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Kyiv, called Tithes, is associated with the baptism of Rus'. This was the first stone structure. The church was built over five years, from 991 to 996, on the site of the battle between Christians and pagans. Although in the Tale of Bygone Years the year 989 is named as the beginning of the construction of the temple.

Here the earthly journey of the first martyrs Fedor, as well as his son John, ended. Prince Vladimir Svyatoslavich, by his decree, allocated tithes from the state treasury, or at present, from the budget, for the construction of the church. That is why the church received this name.

At one time it was the largest temple. In 1240, troops of the Tatar-Mongol Khanate destroyed the temple. According to other sources, the church collapsed under the weight of the people who had gathered there in the hope of hiding from the invaders. From this archaeological site, only the foundation has been preserved.

Golden Gate

The Golden Gate is considered a symbol of the power and greatness of Ancient Rus'. In 1158, Andrei Bogolyubsky ordered to surround the city of Vladimir with a rampart. After 6 years, he ordered the construction of five entrance gates. Until now, only the Golden Gate, which is an architectural monument, has survived.

This gate was made of oak. Subsequently, they were bound with sheets of copper and covered with gold. But this is not the only reason why the gate got its name. The gilded doors were a real work of art. Residents of the city removed them before the invasion of the Mongol-Tatar army. These doors are included in the UNESCO register as masterpieces lost by humanity.

True, in 1970 a message appeared that the valves were found by Japanese archaeological scientists who took part in cleaning the Klyazma River. It was then that many artifacts were discovered, including valves. But the most valuable thing about them is that the gold plates have not yet been found.

According to legend, the gate arches fell during the completion of construction, crushing 12 builders. Eyewitnesses decided that they all died. Andrei Bogolyubsky ordered to bring the icon of the Mother of God and began to pray for people in trouble. When the gate was cleared of the rubble and raised, the workers there turned out to be alive. They didn't even receive any damage.

It took seven years to build this cathedral. It was erected in honor of the inhabitants of Novgorod, with the help of whom Yaroslav the Wise became the Grand Duke. The construction of the cathedral was completed in 1052. For Yaroslav the Wise, this year became a landmark one. He buried his son Vladimir in Kyiv.

The cathedral was built from different materials. The main ones were brick and stone. The walls of the cathedral were lined with marble, and mosaic patterns and paintings were built into them. This is the trend of Byzantine masters, who sought to be adopted by Slavic architects. Later, marble was replaced with limestone, and frescoes were installed instead of mosaics.

The first painting is dated 1109. But the frescoes were also destroyed over time. Especially much was lost during the Great Patriotic War. Only the fresco “Constantine and Helena” survived into the 21st century.

There are no galleries in the cathedral; outwardly it appears as a cross-domed church with five naves. At that time, this style was characteristic of most temples. Here are three iconostases created in the distant past. Among the main icons in the cathedral are the Tikhvin Icon of the Mother of God, Euthymius the Great, Savva the Illuminated, Anthony the Great, and the Icon of the Mother of God “The Sign”.

There are also old books here. There are many partially disparate works, although there are some that have survived. These are books by Prince Vladimir, Princess Irina, Archbishops John and Nikita, Princes Fyodor and Mstislav. A figurine of a dove, symbolizing the Holy Spirit, adorns the cross of the dome, located in the center.

This temple is unique not only because it is made in the style of romanticism. The cathedral impresses with elements reminiscent of Western basilicas. The most important thing is the white stone carving. Everything worked out thanks to the fact that the construction of the cathedral lay solely on the shoulders of Russian architects. The finishing work was carried out by Greek craftsmen. Everyone tried to do the job in such a way as not to disgrace their state.

The best craftsmen were gathered here, since the cathedral was being built for Prince Vsevolod, a large nest. His family subsequently housed in the cathedral. The history of the cathedral dates back to 1197. Later, the cathedral was consecrated in memory of Dmitry of Thessalonica, who was considered the heavenly patron.

The compositional structure of the cathedral is based on the design features of Byzantine churches. As a rule, these are 4 pillars and 3 apses. The gilded church dome is crowned with a cross. The figure of a dove serves as a weather vane. The walls of the temple attract with images of a mythical nature, saints, and psalms. The miniature of David the musician is a symbol of the state protected by God.

There could not but be an image of Vsevolod the Big Nest here. He was sculpted together with his sons. The interior decoration of the temple is amazing. Despite the fact that many frescoes have been lost, it is still beautiful and solemn here.

The Church of the Savior was built on Mount Nereditsa in just one season in 1198. The temple was erected by decree of Prince Yaroslav Vladimirovich, who ruled Veliky Novgorod at that time. The temple grew up on the elevated bank of the Maly Volkhovets River, not far from the Rurik Settlement.

The church was built in memory of the two sons of Yaroslav Vladimirovich who fell in battle. Externally, the church is not distinguished by majestic superstructures. However, it is an architectural monument. The church was built according to a traditional design for that time. One cubic dome, then, as in other projects, a four-pillar and three-apse version.

The interior of the church is amazing. The walls are completely painted and represent a gallery of Russian painting, one of the most ancient and unique. These paintings were actively studied by scientists in the first third of the last century. Detailed descriptions of the paintings have been preserved, shedding light on the history of the time when the church was erected and on the way of life of the Novgorodians. In 1862, the artist N. Martynov made watercolor copies of the Nereditsky frescoes. They were demonstrated with great success in Paris at the World Exhibition. The sketches were awarded a bronze medal.

These frescoes are a very valuable example of Novgorod monumental painting. Created in the 12th century, they still represent great artistic, and even more so, historical value.

Many consider the Novgorod Kremlin to be the most unique architectural monument. It belongs to one of the oldest monuments. Each city in Rus' erected its own Kremlin. It was a fortress that helped protect residents from enemy raids.

Few Kremlin walls stood. The Novgorod Kremlin has been faithfully serving its residents for the tenth century. This building is the oldest. But she retained her original appearance.

This is why this architectural monument is valuable. The Kremlin was built of red brick; at that time in Rus' the building material was unusual and expensive. But it was not in vain that Novgorod builders used it. The walls of the city did not flinch before the onslaught of many enemy troops.

On the territory of the Novgorod Kremlin stands St. Sophia Cathedral. This is another one of the great architectural monuments of Ancient Rus'. The floor of the cathedral is paved with mosaics. The entire interior is an example of the exquisite craftsmanship of the architects. Every detail, the smallest touch has been worked out.

Residents of the Novgorod land are proud of their Kremlin, believing that it contains an ensemble of architectural monuments that should inspire every Russian.

The Trinity Lavra of St. Sergius is the largest monastery in Russia, which is located in the city of Sergiev Posad in the Moscow region. The founder of the monastery was Sergei of Radonezh. From the day of its foundation, the monastery became the center of the spiritual life of the Moscow lands. Here the army of Prince Dmitry Donskoy received a blessing for the battle with Mamai.

Moreover, Sergius of Radonezh sent into the army the monks Oslyabya and Peresvet, who were distinguished by their zeal in prayer and heroic strength, who showed themselves heroically during the battle of September 8, 1830. For centuries, the monastery was the center of religious education of Russians, as well as the heart of cultural enlightenment.

Many icons were painted in the monastery. This was done by Andrei Rublev and Daniil Cherny, outstanding icon painters. It was here that the well-known Trinity icon was painted. It became an integral part of the monastery iconostasis. Historians call the siege of the monastery by Polish-Lithuanian invaders a test. It was a troubled time. The siege lasted 16 months. The besieged survived and won.

Not all architectural monuments of Ancient Rus' survived and were preserved. There are no traces left of many. But descriptions have been preserved in ancient books. Scientists decipher them and determine their location. Patriots find strength and means and begin to restore ancient buildings. The more actively this work is carried out, the more the greatness of Russia will increase.