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St.
Trinity Cathedral
 In the
western part of the city on a high hill one of the most interesting
and picturesque architectural complexes of Ukraine of late 17th-18th
century – St. Trinity – St. Elijah monastery is situated. It
still attracts numerous tourists by its unforgettable beauty, and the
pilgrims are attracted by the greatest shrines – holy relics of
heaven patrons of Chernihiv land – saint Theodosius of Uhlych and
saint monastic elder Lawrence.
The creation
of this magnificent monastery complex is connected with ancient
underground St. Elijah monastery and refers to the time when Ukraine
survived a turning point in its historic development after the
National Liberation War of 1648-1654. and the main building of this
magnificent complex is St Trinity Cathedral, situated almost in the
center of the monastery yard. It was founded in 1679 through a direct
participation of archbishop Lazar Baranovych and financial support
of hetman Ivan Mazepa according to the project of architect Johann
Baptist Zauer. The construction of the temple lasted for 10 years,
and the finishing works ended in 1695; the same year it was
consecrated by the follower of Lazar Baranovych - Chernihiv
archbishop Theodosius of Uhlych.
The
peculiarity of the architecture of the cathedral is the combination
of space-volume composition of Old-Russ temple with elements of
Ukrainian baroque and early classicism. From outside the cathedral
have common features with western religious buildings – kostels
with obligatory square in basis towers at the corners of western
façade.
The
cathedral is three-nave, six-pillar, three-conch with a clearly
designed transept and seven domes: two over the stairs towers, that
flank the western façade.
The cathedral is covered with the system of torispherical and cross
vaults.
St. Trinity
cathedral refers to a unique type of cathedrals of so called state or
hetman genre, which revitalizes space – planning structures of
stone temples of the Prince Period combined with evident influence
of western (Lithuanian and Polish) baroque. Such temples are known
only in brickwork buildings and are neither prototyped nor followed
in folk wooden architecture. This typological group started with Our
Saviour’s Transfiguration Cathedral of the Monastery of Maksaky in
Chernihiv region founded in 1646.
St. Trinity
cathedral has some more characteristic features important for further
development of this architectural type. In the exterior – it is the
liveliness of the silhouette where seven domes are compositionally
supported by witty pediments, and also the façade
plastic which is a free composition of symbolically interpreted
Renaissance-Baroque order forms with pilasters, semi-pillars,
canopies, etc. used. St. Trinity cathedral served as an example for
building Our Saviour’s Transfiguration Cathedral of the Monastery
of Mhar that is near Lubny town.
The
cathedral is plastered and whitewashed, that underlines the plastic
of décor, processed
in order system with niches, windows, frames and canopies, pilasters
and cornices of different forms used.
The baroque
style decoration of the cathedral underlines the festive look of the
central part of the cathedral. Deep semi-circular niches situated in
both tiers strengthen the dynamism and contrast of architectural
forms of the cathedral. In Roman church temples sculptures were put
in such niches, but in Orthodox ones they served only as a décor
elements, local and state saints are usually depicted in them. The
painting refers to the early 20th century.
The
cathedral suffered fires, reconstructions, but during the restoration
works in 1980s it was restored in its primordial look. The author of
restoration project – Kyiv architect M.M. Hovdenko.
Gorgeous and
festive is the interior of the cathedral. It is decorated by the
iconostasis of 1942-1949 created after the WW 2nd by local
artist Pimen Portnyi, and by the whole complex of wall painting of
the 17th – 20th centuries.
Saint relics
of saint Theodosius of Uhlych and saint Lawrence are now in the
cathedral; and under the floor there is a burial vault that proves
that the cathedral is the burial place of ecclesiastic hierarchs,
feudal nobles of the 18th – beginning of the 20th
centuries.
Since 1988
St Trinity cathedral is an operative Orthodox church, and the
religious school of regents-psalm-singers operates on the territory
of St. Trinity monastery.
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