For the last Spring album I suggest visiting Pushkin
(formerly known as Tsarskoe Selo) and taking a stroll through Feodorovsky
town and its close neighbourhood. We had a glance at some of the buildings
a long time ago. Today we're going to
take a closer look.
Barracks of the Infantry Escort regiment were built in
1895-96.
The architect was Vladimir N. Maximov.
Igor Krestovsky designed this monument to
Vasiliy Vasilievich Dokuchaev (1846-1903), founder of the soil science.
The former barracks (behind) are currently occupied by the
Agricultural Institute.
This and other structures in the album
belong to the neo-medieval trend in architecture. In other words, these
are early-20th century imitations of ancient Russian buildings.
In my
personal opinion, any attempts to imitate culture of the
long-gone times bear witness to the lack of national fulcrum in the
present.
Certainly this doesn't mean that such structures are necessarily bad.
This panoramic view represents the
barracks inner court.
The n-shaped building is far from being built along a single line (as it
may appear in the photo).
That's what the turrets are topped with.
Exterior view of the longest barracks
wall.
Feodorovsky sobor, or the Cathedral of
Our Lady of St Theodore.
Its location was personally chosen by
Nicholas II.
The cathedral consists of two diverse levels dedicated to different
saints. The higher temple is for feast celebrations, whereas the lower
temple is for everyday worship.
Designed by Vladimir Pokrovsky, the cathedral was constructed in
1909-12 to commemorate the tercentenary of the Romanov dynasty.
Some say the edifice is patterned after the Annuniciation Cathedral
of the Moscow Kremlin (i.e., the Romanovs' family church).
The cathedral was to be frequented by members of the Romanov
family, as well as infantry regiment soldiers stationed in Tsarskoe
Selo.
The eastern (or czar's) porch.
The cathedral was closed from 1934 to 1991.
I guess this fresco depicts Christ
holding the gospel in his hands. The design is allegedly patterned after
the Lord Almighty type of icons.
The other side of the pond is dominated
by Feodorovsky (St.Theodore) town.
Its name is derived from the ancient icon "Our Lady of St Theodore" in
whose honour the cathedral was dedicated. This icon has been regarded as
the holy protectress of the Romanov dynasty.
On the left are parsonage houses. On the right is the Dining chamber.
They are connected through a passage above the gates.
The town was intended to house the
cathedral clergy and staff. In the process of construction some
precincts were assigned to house a museum of old Russian art.
Building activity was over by 1914.
The architect Krichinsky took as his
model the 17th-century Kolomenskoe palace near Moscow.
They didn't have time to open a museum.
With the outbreak of the World War, the largest of 50 municipal
hospitals was allocated here.
The carving is remarkably geometric.
The gates to the left of parsonage
houses.
During the construction works some 100
cedars were planted along the pond's shore. Either they haven't
survived, or I don't know how cedars are looking :)
The town was ruined during the World War II.
Today Feodorovsky town is returned to the
church. For example, the interior yard is closed so that I had to take
the photo through the railings. If I understand correctly, this yard is
assigned to some cloister.
You may see an entrance to this yard on
the right side of the photo.
I want to make it clear that the following albums will also concern
Tsarskoe Selo.
