Who built St. Basil's Cathedral? Main versions. Scientists have found out who built the temples in Bogolyubovo Construction of the cathedral by Aristotle Fioravanti

“A truss is a structure made of triangular elements. For example, large shopping malls, factory workshops, large railway bridges are made of such trusses. And such trusses support this flat ceiling.They are made of cast iron. Where they came from is completely unclear.

To give you an idea of ​​the scale of this innovation, the next metal roof trusses (that is, the trusses that form the roof) appear only in the early to mid-19th century! That is, already 300 years before global progress, these structures appeared in St. Basil's Cathedral.If these were Italian architects, this does not explain anything: this did not happen in Italy in those days! It is still unclear how this arose."

Airat Bagautdinov, engineering historian, author of the educational project “Moscow through the eyes of an engineer”

Pantheon Farms

The rafters of the most important buildings, such as the Basilica Ulpia or the portico of the Pantheon, are made of bronze. The trusses of the Pantheon do not deviate in terms of design from a wooden structure, but the cross-section of the parts is quite consistent with the use of metal; they are box-shaped and made of three bronze sheets connected by bolts.

It can apparently be considered established that the large hall of the cold baths in the Baths of Caracalla also had a roof terrace lying on iron T-beams. Thus, the Romans were ahead of us in terms of rational profiling of metal parts.

Auguste Choisy, chapter from the book “Methods of Roman Construction” section “Architecture of Ancient Rome” “History of Architecture” (Auguste Choisy, Histoire De L "Architecture, Paris, 1899)

The richest collection of metal elements in “antiquities” was presented by ISIS terrorists:

Ruins of Hatra with fittings

ISIS has revealed to the world very interesting details regarding this ancient monument.

The sculptures and decorations turned out to be made of modern reinforced concrete. This can be clearly seen from the footage of channels and reinforcement that were opened during the destruction of the monuments.

Ref. channel - a standard profile of structural elements made of rolled metal, having a “U”-shaped section.

Below is a video and detailed photos of the destruction:

Photos before the destruction:

statue with reinforcement at the feet:

Designer elements:

Here, in fact, is a “large-scale reconstruction”. Or construction?

The most harmless version is that all these are the results of reconstruction that took place during the reign of Saddam Hussein (1979-2003). It is known that he had a large program of restoration of antiquities to exalt the historical significance of Iraq and the continuity from Mesopotamia. In the Republican Guard, even divisions bore ancient names: “Nebuchadnezzar”, “Hammurabi”.

However, in this regard, the question arises - how much of what is presented as the greatest monument of 2 thousand years ago was restored and strengthened, and what this monument was like before the restoration. The question is not simple; there are practically no old photographs of this complex on the Internet.

Note that, according to the official version, pyrons (metal inserts) were widely used in ancient times, and this metal rod protruding from a fragment of an antique statue corresponds to the official version.

Parthian female statue from Hatra

The famous winged lions of the biblical city of Nineveh

It is the center of worship of the goddess Ishtar and the great capital of Assyria. The main masterpiece is the palace of King Senacherib with gigantic statues of guards - pairs of winged man-lions and man-bulls (supposedly 8th century BC).

Nineveh and its palace were discovered by the great British archaeologist Austin Henry Layard in 1845-1851. No photographs were taken of the excavations. Like the discovery of “ancient Egypt,” the discovery of Nineveh is reflected only in drawings. The first photographs were taken from the “excavated” palace.

These guards were purchased by the world's largest museums, the Louvre, the British Museum, the Baghdad Museum, the Metropolitan Museum of New York, and the Pushkin State Museum of Fine Arts. The couple remained in Nineveh.

Residence of the famous king of Assyria Sargon II fortress Dur-Sharrukin (supposedly 8th century BC).

Modern fittings are visible inside the Assyrian ancient sculpture.
The fortress was “opened” by the French Consul General Paul-Emile Botta in 1842-44, and continued to “open” Victor Place in 1852-55. The famous cuneiform library was also found here.

Winged geniuses

In literature, history, and culture they are called “winged geniuses.” Some have human faces, some have bird faces, a popular “Assyrian” plot of the insemination of the “tree of life”.

This is an alabaster slab, supposedly made in 870 BC. This deity is called Nisroch, an analogue of the Scandinavian Frey; the slab had, as follows from the cuneiform script, a cult purpose: during ceremonies, the priests poured water on it, which they then collected in vessels; this rite became a prototype of Christian grace.

She decorated the palace of Ashur-natsir-apala II (Ashurnazirpal) in Kalakh, which was “excavated” in 1845-1851.

Bas-reliefs with “winged geniuses” decorated all the main palaces of the Assyrian kings. In the palace of Sargon II Dur-Sharrukin there were 37 pairs of “geniuses”. This pair and five individual "geniuses" were kept in the Mosul Museum. They are in all the main museums of the world - the Hermitage, British, Metropolitan, Louvre, etc.

The “artifact” itself, as expected, is not solid, but consists of segments convenient for assembly and transportation.

In the segments, short reinforcements are visible on the end side and grooves for fastening elements of the segments.

The reinforcement also protrudes from the back of the segments. It was used to fasten a bas-relief in the wall of the “palace of the Assyrian king.”

Long reinforcements, approximately half the length of the segment, protrude from the lower end side.

At first, radical Islamist vandals hammered the “ancient bas-relief” as hard as they could, like a solid slab; curved reinforcement was visible in the hole; then, when it became clear that the bas-relief could be disassembled like Lego, they began to break it “according to the rules.”

Then they took a grinder and cut the reinforcement connecting the segments, which has nowhere to come from in the “ancient Assyrian bas-reliefs.”

Today, July 12, the Intercession Cathedral, better known as St. Basil's Cathedral, celebrates its 450th anniversary. This date is not accidental: on July 2 (June 29, old style), 1561, the central Intercession Church of the cathedral was consecrated.

The Cathedral of the Intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary on the Moat, better known as St. Basil's Cathedral, is located in the southern part of Red Square in Moscow, near the Kremlin's Spassky Gate, above the descent to the Moscow River. It was built in the mid-16th century by order of Tsar Ivan IV the Terrible to commemorate the conquest of the Kazan Khanate - part of the former Golden Horde - as a sign of gratitude for the victory.

It is not known exactly what stood before on the site of the Intercession Cathedral. Russian chronicles contain fragmentary and contradictory reports about wooden and stone churches. This gave rise to many guesses, versions and legends.

According to one version, soon after the return of Ivan IV the Terrible from the Kazan campaign of 1552, on the site of the future Church of the Intercession on the Moat on the edge of the Moscow River, a wooden church in the name of the Life-Giving Trinity with seven chapels was founded on a hill.

Saint Metropolitan Macarius of Moscow advised Ivan the Terrible to create a stone church here. Metropolitan Macarius also came up with the main compositional idea for the future church.

The first reliable mention of the construction of the Church of the Intercession of Our Lady dates back to the autumn of 1554. It is believed that it was a wooden cathedral. It stood for a little over six months and was dismantled before the construction of the stone cathedral began in the spring of 1555.

The Intercession Cathedral was built by Russian architects Barma and Postnik (there is a version that Postnik and Barma are the names of the same person). According to legend, so that the architects could not create a new and better creation, Tsar Ivan IV, upon completion of the construction of an outstanding masterpiece of architecture, ordered them to be blinded. This fiction was subsequently proven to be untenable.

The construction of the temple took only 6 years and only in the warm season. The chronicle contains a description of the “miraculous” acquisition by the masters of the ninth, southern throne, after the entire structure was almost completed. However, the clear symmetry inherent in the cathedral convinces us that the architects initially had an idea about the compositional structure of the future temple: it was planned to erect eight chapels around the central ninth church. The temple was built of brick, and the foundation, plinth and some decorative elements were made of white stone.

By the autumn of 1559 the cathedral was basically completed. On the Feast of the Intercession of the Mother of God, all the churches were consecrated, with the exception of the central one, since “the larger church, the middle Intercession, was not completed that year.”

The consecration of the Intercession Church and, accordingly, the entire cathedral took place on July 12 (June 29, old style) 1561. Metropolitan Macarius consecrated the temple.

Each church of the cathedral received its own dedication. The Eastern Church was consecrated in the name of the Holy Life-Giving Trinity. Researchers are still looking for an answer to why this church got its name. There are several hypotheses. It is known that in honor of the “Holy Life-Giving Trinity” a monastery was founded in 1553 in conquered Kazan. It is also believed that on the site of the Intercession Cathedral there originally stood a wooden Trinity Church, which gave its name to one of the chapels of the future temple.

Four side chapels are consecrated in honor of the saints, on whose memory days the most important events of the Kazan campaign took place: Cyprian and Justina (October 2 (15) - on this day the assault on Kazan ended), Gregory, the enlightener of Great Armenia (on his memory day September 30 (13 October) there was an explosion of the Arsk tower in Kazan), Alexander Svirsky (on his memorial day, August 30 (September 12), a victory was won over the army of Tsarevich Epancha, who was rushing from Crimea to help the Tatars), Three Patriarchs of Constantinople Alexander, John and Paul the New ( also commemorated on August 30).

Three more chapels are dedicated to Nikolai Velikoretsky, Varlaam Khutynsky and the Feast of the Entry of the Lord into Jerusalem. The central throne is named in honor of the Intercession of the Virgin Mary, since on October 1 (14), on the day of this holiday, symbolizing the intercession of the Mother of God for the Christian race, the main assault on Kazan began. The entire cathedral was named after the central church.

The prefix “on the Moat”, found in chronicles about the cathedral, is due to the fact that across the entire square, later called Red, along the Kremlin wall from the 14th century there was a deep and wide defensive ditch, which was filled in in 1813.

The cathedral had an unusual architectural composition - 9 independent churches were built on a single foundation - a basement - and connected to each other by internal vaulted passages surrounding the central temple. Outside, all the churches were surrounded by an initially open gallery-promenade. The central church ended with a high tent, the chapels were covered with vaults and topped with domes.

The ensemble of the cathedral was complemented by a three-hipped open belfry, in the arched spans of which massive bells hung.

Initially, the Intercession Cathedral was crowned with 8 large domes and a small dome over the central church. To emphasize the importance of the building material, as well as to protect the cathedral from atmospheric influences, all its exterior walls were painted in red and white colors. The painting imitated brickwork. The material of the original covering of the domes remains unknown, since they were lost during a devastating fire in 1595.

The cathedral existed in its original form until 1588. Then a tenth church was added to it on the north-eastern side over the grave of the holy fool St. Basil, who spent a lot of time near the cathedral under construction and bequeathed to be buried next to it. The famous Moscow miracle worker died in 1557, and after his canonization, the son of Tsar Ivan IV the Terrible, Fyodor Ioannovich, ordered the construction of a church. Architecturally, it was an independent pillarless temple with a separate entrance.

The place where the relics of St. Basil were found was marked with a silver shrine, which was subsequently lost during the Time of Troubles, at the beginning of the 17th century. Divine services in the saint’s church soon became daily, and starting from the 17th century, the name of the chapel was gradually transferred to the entire cathedral, becoming its “popular” name: St. Basil’s Cathedral.

At the end of the 16th century, figurative domes of the cathedral appeared - instead of the original burnt covering.

In 1672, an eleventh church was added to the cathedral on the south-eastern side: a small temple over the tomb of John the Blessed - the revered Moscow holy fool, buried near the cathedral in 1589.

In the second half of the 17th century, significant changes occurred in the appearance of the cathedral. The wooden canopies over the walkway, which burned down every now and then in fires, were replaced with roofing on arched brick pillars. The Church of St. Theodosius the Virgin was built above the porch of the Church of St. Basil the Blessed. Above the previously open white stone stairs leading to the upper tier of the cathedral, vaulted hipped porches appeared, built on the so-called “creeping” arches.

In the same period, polychrome ornamental painting appeared. It covers the newly built porches, support pillars, outer walls of galleries and parapets of walkways. At this time, the facades of churches retain paintings imitating brickwork.

In 1683, the entire cathedral along the upper cornice was surrounded by a tiled inscription. Large yellow letters on a dark blue background of watered tiles reported on the history of the creation of the temple and its renovation in the second half of the 17th century. The inscription was destroyed a century later during another renovation.

In the 1680s. The belfry was rebuilt. In place of the open structure, a two-tier bell tower with an open upper platform for ringing was erected.

In 1737, during a huge fire, St. Basil's Cathedral was badly damaged, especially its southern church.

Dramatic changes in its painting program occurred during renovations in the 1770s and 1780s. The thrones of wooden churches demolished to prevent fires from Red Square were moved to the territory of the cathedral and under its vaults. At the same time, the throne of the Three Patriarchs of Constantinople was renamed in the name of John the Merciful, and the Church of Cyprian and Justina began to bear the name of Saints Adrian and Natalia (the original dedications to the churches were returned in the 1920s).

The inside of the church was painted with oil paintings depicting saints and hagiographic scenes. The oil painting was renewed in 1845-1848. and at the end of the 19th century. The outside walls were covered with paintings that imitated masonry made of large boulders - “wild stone”. The arches of the basement (lower non-residential tier) were laid, in the western part of which housing for the clergy (temple servants) was placed. The bell tower was combined by an extension with the cathedral building. The upper part of St. Basil's chapel (Church of Theodosius the Virgin) was rebuilt into a sacristy - a repository of church valuables and shrines.

In 1812, the order was given to French artillerymen to blow up the cathedral. However, it was only plundered by Napoleon's troops, but immediately after the war it was repaired and consecrated. The area around the cathedral was landscaped and surrounded by an openwork cast-iron lattice, designed by the famous architect O. Bove.

At the end of the 19th century, the task of returning the cathedral to its original appearance arose for the first time. The specially created Commission for the restoration of the monument included famous architects, scientists and painters, who determined the main directions of research and restoration of the Intercession Cathedral. However, the lack of funds, the October Revolution and the subsequent period of devastation in the history of Russia did not allow the implementation of the planned program.

In 1918, the Intercession Cathedral was one of the first to be taken under state protection as a monument of national and world significance. Since May 21, 1923, it has been open to visitors as a historical and architectural museum. Moreover, until 1929, services were held in the Church of St. Basil the Blessed.

In 1928, the Intercession Cathedral became a branch of the State Historical Museum and remains so to this day.

In the 1920s Extensive scientific restoration work was carried out on the monument, thanks to which it became possible to restore the original appearance of the cathedral and recreate the interiors of the 16th - 17th centuries in individual churches.

From this moment to the present, four global restorations have been carried out, including architectural and pictorial works. The original 16th-century “brick-like” painting was restored outside, in the Church of the Intercession of the Mother of God and in the Church of Alexander Svirsky.

In the 1950s-1960s. Unique restoration work was carried out: a “temple chronicle” was opened in the interior of the central church, in which the ancient architects indicated the exact date of completion of the cathedral - July 12, 1561 (the day of Equal-to-the-Apostles Peter and Paul); For the first time, the iron coverings of the domes were replaced with copper ones. The successful choice of material contributed to the fact that the dome coverings remain undamaged to this day.

In the interiors of four churches, iconostases have been reconstructed, almost entirely consisting of icons of the 16th - 17th centuries, among which there are genuine masterpieces of the Old Russian school of icon painting ("Trinity" of the 16th century). The pride of the collection are the icons of the 16th-17th centuries. “Vision of the Sexton Tarasius”, “Nikola Velikoretsky in the Life”, “Alexander Nevsky in the Life”, as well as icons from the original iconostasis of the Church of the Intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary “Basily the Great” and “John Chrysostom”. In the remaining churches, iconostases from the 18th - 19th centuries have been preserved. Among them, two iconostases were moved in the 1770s. from the cathedrals of the Moscow Kremlin (altar barriers in the Church of the Entry of the Lord into Jerusalem and in the central church).

In the 1970s On the outer bypass gallery, under the later entries, a 17th-century fresco was discovered. The found painting served as the basis for recreating the original ornamental painting on the facades of the cathedral.

The year 1990 was an important milestone in the history of the museum: the Intercession Cathedral was included in the List of UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Russia. After a long break, services were resumed in the Church of the Intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary. The following year, the cathedral was approved for joint use by the State Historical Museum and the Russian Orthodox Church.

In 1997, the restoration of the interior, monumental and easel paintings was completed in St. Basil's Church, closed since the late 1920s. The church was included in the exhibition of the Intercession Cathedral, and divine services were resumed there.

The Russian Orthodox Church holds divine services in the Intercession Cathedral: on the days of the main altars (the Intercession and St. Basil), patriarchal or lordly services are held. Every Sunday an akathist is read at the shrine of St. Basil the Blessed.

In 2001-2011 The seven churches of the cathedral were completely restored, the facade paintings were renewed, and the tempera painting of the internal gallery was partially renewed. In 2007, the Intercession Cathedral became a nominee for the “Seven Wonders of Russia” competition.

The material was prepared based on information from open sources

The famous colorful Church of the Intercession on the Moat, one of the main attractions of Moscow, was erected in 1555-1561 to commemorate the capture of Kazan by Russian troops in 1552. It was consecrated in honor of the Feast of the Intercession because the attack of Russian troops on Kazan began on this very day. We are accustomed to perceiving the cathedral as one, but in fact it consists of ten independent churches. Hence the bizarre, unique appearance of the entire cathedral, or, better said, the temple complex.

Initially, there were nine churches, with the central one dedicated to the Protection of the Virgin Mary, and the remaining eight to a specific holiday or saint, on whose day one or another memorable event occurred related to the siege of Kazan. In 1588, a church was added to the complex over the burial place of the famous Moscow Blessed Basil, and this is the only one that has the right to be called, in the strict sense of the word, the Church of St. Basil.

So, we will talk about the Intercession Multi-Church Cathedral, as it was built in 1555-1561. In many books, even in our time, you can read that its construction was carried out under the supervision of two masters - Barma and Posnik. There are, however, versions that the construction was supervised by unknown Italian masters. But it has no documentary evidence and no argumentation, except for the unusual appearance of the cathedral. N.M. Karamzin rashly called the style of the Intercession Cathedral “Gothic,” but this is absolutely incorrect from an art criticism point of view, and only the authority of the “first Russian historiographer” allows some to still insist on the foreign authorship of the original St. Basil’s Cathedral.
Where did the idea come from that the construction was supervised by two masters?

In 1896, priest Ivan Kuznetsov published an excerpt from a handwritten collection then stored in the Rumyantsev Museum. This collection was compiled no earlier than the end of the 17th - beginning of the 18th century. It contains “The Legend of the Transfer of the Miraculous Image of Nicholas the Wonderworker,” which was a royal gift to the Intercession Cathedral. This late legend says that Tsar Ivan the Terrible, soon after the capture of Kazan, erected seven wooden churches around a larger, eighth, stone one, near the Frolov Gate (i.e., from the 17th century, the gate of the Kremlin’s Spasskaya Tower). “And then God gave him two Russian masters, nicknamed Barma and Postnik, who were wise and suitable for such a wonderful work.” This information about the “two masters” was taken for granted by most historians.

But the legend, which reinterpreted the old legend, was not a chronicle text. In addition, let us recall that the expression “by nickname” in the Russian language of that time, as now, meant only a person’s nickname, and not his own name. A barma could be called a skilled craftsman, since barma are mantles on the clothes of kings and spiritual dignitaries, richly and variously decorated and requiring skillful and careful execution. Posnik, or Postnik, is a proper name. Therefore, it is not logical that in the “Tale” the first master is named only by a nickname without a name, and the second - only by a name without a nickname.

More reliable can be considered the text from the “Russian Chronicler from the beginning of the Russian land to the accession of Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich to the throne,” written in the first half of the 17th century, that is, much closer in time to the event of interest to us. In it we read: “In the same year, by order of the Tsar and Sovereign and Grand Duke Ivan, a church was started, promised for the capture of Kazan in honor of the Trinity and the Intercession..., and the master was Barma and his comrades.” Only one architect is named here, but, obviously, not due to ignorance of the name of the second master (Posnik), but because it was the same person.

Subsequently, another source was found indicating that the names Posnik and Barma actually refer to one, and not two, individuals. It follows from it that the manuscript of the Code of Laws of 1550 belonged until 1633 to the monastery solicitor, the Moscow serviceman Druzhina. Druzhina was the son of Tarutia and the grandson of Posnik, who had the nickname Barma. The matter seems completely clear: two mythical masters, one of whom was called Barma, and the other - Posnik, are united into one historical person - Posnik (this, of course, is not a baptismal name, but something like a modern surname) nicknamed Barma, which meant that this a person skilled in crafts.

Moreover, the architect Postnik of that time is known for the construction of a number of other buildings, namely: the Kazan Kremlin, St. Nicholas and Assumption Cathedrals in Sviyazhsk. However, this fact, brilliantly proven back in 1957 by the domestic archaeologist N.F. Kalinin, are still ignored by many historians and art critics who, out of habit, talk about Barma and Postnik as the two builders of the Intercession Cathedral.

One of the most striking, majestic and mysterious architectural monuments of the capital is St. Basil's. Back in the 16th century, wanderers and visiting people visiting this cathedral remained forever fascinated by its stateliness and beauty. But there are still several legends in the world about who built St. Basil's Cathedral.

History of St. Basil's Cathedral

Construction of the cathedral, and this is what people call it, began in 1555. And in just 6 years, the builders erected a stone palace of unprecedented beauty. The order to found the temple came from the Tsar of All Rus', Ivan the Terrible, in honor of the victory that Russian troops won over the Kazan Khan. This event happened on one of the Orthodox holidays - the Intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary, therefore this cathedral is often called the Church of the Intercession of the Mother of God.

The history of St. Basil's Cathedral is still mysterious and unclear.

Legend one

The temple was built by an architect whose real name is Postnik Yakovlev. He received this nickname because he fasted carefully and for a long time. He was one of the most skilled craftsmen in Pskov. Later he was sent to Kazan to supervise the construction of the stone city. An interesting parable tells about collecting money for the construction of a parish. St. Basil the Blessed lived and begged in Moscow. He threw the collected coins over his right shoulder into one place, and no one dared to take even one. Over time, when there was enough money, Vasily gave it to Ivan the Terrible.

But the facts suggest that this is just a beautiful fairy tale, since the holy fool died even before it was decided to build the cathedral. Nevertheless, it was at the site where the building was built that St. Basil the Blessed was buried.

Legend two

Two masters worked on the construction of the cathedral at once - Postnik and Barma. Legend has it that as soon as Ivan the Terrible saw the completed building, he was struck by its unusualness and ensemble. So that architects could no longer repeat such beauty, the king ordered the architects' eyes to be gouged out. But this version is not confirmed, since the name of Faster appears in later chronicles. It turns out that the master could have been engaged in the construction of other buildings.

Legend three

The most realistic version is considered to be the following: the temple was erected under the guidance of an architect who came from Western Europe. An unusual style in which patterns of Russian and Western European architecture are intertwined is considered proof of this fact. But this version has not been officially confirmed anywhere.

Throughout its long history, the temple could have been destroyed or destroyed. But some miracle always saved this pride of Russia.

In the 18th century, during a fire in Moscow, the building was engulfed in flames, but courageous Muscovites saved the temple as best they could. As a result, the building was damaged, but survived. Later it was recreated in almost the same form as before the fire.

In the 19th century, when Napoleon entered the Russian capital, barns for horses were built in the cathedral. Later, when leaving Moscow, the emperor, in a rage, ordered not to leave a single stone in this cathedral. The wonderful structure had to be blown up. And again the heroic Muscovites and the Lord God helped defend the temple. When the French soldiers began to light the wicks that went to the barrels of gunpowder, people began to put out the fire at the cost of their lives. And then the rain came to their aid. The rain poured with such crushing force that it extinguished all the sparks.

Already in the 20th century, Kaganovich, showing a model of the renovation and reconstruction of Red Square to Joseph Stalin, removed the figure of the temple, deciding to demolish it forever. But the supreme commander said menacingly: “Lazarus, put him in his place!”

In 1936, during the construction of highways, it was decided to destroy the temple, as it interfered with traffic. But the Moscow restorer Baranovsky came to his defense. The Kremlin received a telegram from him: “If you decide to blow up the temple, blow it up with me!”

In appearance, this picturesque structure is an ensemble of churches. In the very center stands the Church of the Intercession, the highest among all. There are 8 more chapels around it. Each temple is crowned with a dome. If you look at the cathedral from a bird's eye view, this building looks like a five-pointed star. This is a symbol of heavenly Jerusalem.

Each church is inherently unique and inimitable. They received their names from the names of the holidays on which the decisive battles for Kazan fell.

• In honor of the holiday of Trinity.
• Nicholas the Wonderworker (in honor of the Velikoretsky image).
• Palm Sunday, or the Entry of the Lord into Jerusalem.
• Martyrs Cyprian and Ustina. In the future, Adriana and Natalia.
• Saints Paul, Alexander and John of Constantinople - until the 18th century, then John the Merciful.
• Alexander Svirsky.
• Varlaam Khutynsky;
• Gregory of Armenia.

Later, another chapel was added in honor of the holy fool St. Basil.

Each dome has its own various decorations - kokoshniks, cornices, windows and niches. All temples are connected by ceilings and vaults.

A special place is given to paintings that depict portraits of famous people and colorful landscape sketches. Everyone can feel the atmosphere of the times of Ivan the Terrible if they carefully study the church utensils of that time.

At the very bottom there is a basement that forms the base of the cathedral. It consists of separate rooms in which the treasury used to be hidden, and rich townspeople brought their acquired property here.

It is impossible to talk about the beauty of this temple. In order to fall in love with this place forever, you must visit it. Then pride will appear in the heart of any person that this unique and mysterious cathedral is located here in Russia. And it doesn’t matter who built St. Basil’s Cathedral, this fantastic and stunningly beautiful symbol of our Motherland.

The famous colorful Church of the Intercession on the Moat, one of the main attractions of Moscow, was built from 1555 to 1561 to commemorate the capture of Kazan by Russian troops in 1552. It was consecrated in honor of the holiday of the Intercession because the attack of Russian troops on Kazan began on this day. We are accustomed to perceiving the cathedral as one, but in fact it consists of ten independent churches. Hence the bizarre, unique appearance of the entire cathedral, or, better said, the temple complex.

Initially there were nine churches, and the central one was in honor of the Feast of the Intercession of the Virgin Mary. The remaining eight were dedicated to some holiday or saint, on whose day one or another memorable event occurred related to the siege of Kazan. In 1588, a church was attached to the complex over the burial place of the famous Moscow Blessed Basil, and this is the only one that has the right to be called, in the strict sense of the word, the Church of St. Basil. [C-BLOCK]

So, we will talk about the Intercession Multi-Church Cathedral, as it was built in 1555-1561. In many books even today you can read that its construction was supervised by two masters: Barma and Posnik. There are, however, versions that the construction was supervised by some unknown Italian masters. But it has no documentary evidence and no argumentation, except for the unusual appearance of the cathedral. N. M. Karamzin rashly called the style of the Intercession Cathedral “Gothic,” but this is absolutely incorrect from an art historical point of view, and only the authority of this “first Russian historiographer” allows some to still insist on the foreign authorship of the original St. Basil’s Cathedral.

Where did the persistent opinion come from that the construction was supervised by two masters?

In 1896, priest Ivan Kuznetsov published an excerpt from a handwritten collection then stored in the Rumyantsev Museum. This collection is late, was compiled no earlier than the end of the 17th - beginning of the 18th centuries. The collection contains “The Legend of the Transfer of the Miraculous Image of Nicholas the Wonderworker,” which was the royal contribution to the Intercession Cathedral that was under construction. In this later legend we read that Tsar Ivan the Terrible, soon after the capture of Kazan, erected seven wooden churches around a larger, eighth, stone one, near the Frolov Gate (i.e., from the 17th century, the gate of the Kremlin’s Spasskaya Tower). “And then God gave him two Russian masters, nicknamed Barma and Postnik, who were wise and suitable for such a wonderful work.” This news about the “two masters” was accepted uncritically by most historians. [C-BLOCK]

This news was not a chronicle text, but a much later legend, in which the old legend was reinterpreted. The expression “by nickname” was placed in the Russian language of that time before a person’s nickname, and not before his own name. Posnik or Postnik is a proper name. Barma is a nickname that perhaps meant a skilled person, just as barmas were skillfully made - mantles for grand ducal and royal clothes, richly and variously decorated. Therefore, in the phrase “Tales” about two masters “nicknamed Barma and Postnika”, it is illogical that the first master is named only by a nickname without a name, and the second - only by a name without a nickname.

A more logical text is from the “Russian Chronicler from the beginning of the Russian land to the accession to the throne of Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich,” written in the first half of the 17th century; therefore, much closer to the event of interest to us. It says: “In the same year (1560), by order of the Tsar and Sovereign and Grand Duke Ivan, a church was started, promised for the capture of Kazan in honor of the Trinity and the Intercession..., and the master was Barma and his comrades.” Only one master is named here, but, obviously, not due to the author’s ignorance of the second master (Postnik), but because it was the same person. [C-BLOCK]

Subsequently, another source was found showing that the names Postnik and Barma actually refer to one, and not two, persons. It follows from it that the manuscript of the Code of Laws of 1550 belonged until 1633 to the monastery solicitor, the Moscow service man Druzhina. Druzhina was the son of Tarutia and the grandson of Posnik, who had the nickname Barma. The matter seems completely clear. And thus the mythical “two masters”, one of whom was called Barma, and the other Postnik, are combined into one historical person - Postnik (this, of course, is not a baptismal name, but something like a modern surname) nicknamed Barma, which meant that this person skilled in crafts.

Moreover, the master Postnik of that time is known for the construction of a number of other buildings, namely: the Kazan Kremlin, St. Nicholas and Assumption Cathedrals in Sviyazhsk. However, this fact, brilliantly proven back in 1957 by the domestic archaeologist N.F. Kalinin, still passes by the attention of many historians and art critics, and they habitually talk about “Barma and Postnik as two builders of the Intercession Cathedral.”