By the 12th century, Kyiv began to lose its position as a capital city, and Vladimir took over these functions.
Andrei Bogolyubsky finally moved the capital of his principality to this city, equipped it, invited craftsmen and, of course, built churches. In 1158, by his order, the first stone temple was laid.
The frescoes of the cathedral are poorly preserved, but even so it is obvious that the facade of the cathedral was painted by an experienced master. It is the facade — only after the reconstruction of the cathedral by Vsevolod the Big Nest, the northern wall became internal. The prophets holding test scrolls in their hands were painted with such
skill that there is no doubt that this was not the only façade painting in the Vladimir-Suzdal land. Unfortunately, other evidence has not survived.
After the death of Prince Andrei, his brother, Vsevolod the Big Nest, ascended the throne. He spent his youth in Constantinople, in exile. He knew the Greek language and greatly appreciated Greek culture. When Vsevolod became a prince, he invited Greek craftsmen for construction and painting work.
First of all, Vsevolod rebuilt the Assumption Cathedral, which suffered from a fire and became too small for the growing city.
Inside the cathedral there were fragments of the image of 2 saints behind the altar. One of them is Habakkuk, the second is unknown. The manner of writing on the frescoes depicting Abraham and Artemius indicates that they were made by a Greek master or a student of the Greek school.
It is sad that at the end of the 19th century, it was still possible to read Greek inscriptions on the walls, but they have not survived to this day.
Dmitrievsky Cathedral
Dmitry Solunsky Cathedral was built no earlier than 1194 and painted it an artist specially invited from Constantinople.
Frescoes of the Last Judgment have reached us. In the foreground are the apostles, behind them are the angels. There is an image of the Virgin Mary sitting on a throne and a procession of the righteous to heaven. The Greek master depicted each apostle as a living person, and not as a frozen figure. The figures of angels were painted by at least 2 artists, most likely students. The brushstrokes are less confident, the color transitions are not as professional. It is striking how the Greek type of the faces of the apostles is supplanted by the undoubtedly Slavic features of the angels. The Garden of Eden is filled with rich vegetation, the robes of the righteous virgins are undoubtedly Slavic. Russian artists processed the knowledge received from the Greeks and introduced their own unique features and manner of depiction.
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During the restoration work, fragments of several compositions were opened: the image of St. Helena and Martyr Mary in the Garden of Eden, youths in the furnace of fire, the renunciation of Peter. Date
painting at the end of the 12th century. She’s very traditional, heavyweight. Figures are frozen, without rhythm and dynamics. No information about the masters and customers remained.
The date of the painting of this church we know for sure: 1233. The style of writing is not repeated anywhere else. However, since the cathedral was painted by order of Bishop Kirill of Rostov, in the course of large-scale art works throughout the principality, it is considered that the frescoes were made by
local masters.
OVA, after the painting of the Christmas Cathedral, in Russia was not up to frescoes. The Tatars are here. From 1243, their raids became regular. People went to the forests, connections were lost, education was declining. There were no funds or hands for the construction of magnificent buildings. Most importantly, there was no sense of security to start a major project.
Dark times have arrived.
Charity Foundation Holy LandZ
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