5 Must See Places in Kremlin
The Old Russian town of Kremlin is a perfect feast to the eyes of an architecture lover. It offers you a variety of buildings exhibiting the beauty of old European architecture. The opulent palaces, the magnificent cathedrals, the majestic bell towers and much more are there for an art lover. Lets look at my pick of top 5 must see architectural beauties of Kremlin.
Ivan the Great Bell Tower
This elegant bell tower built in 1505 to 08 and designed by Marco Bon Friazin is my first pick. It takes its name from the Church of St Ivan Climacus, which stood on the site in the 14th century. The bell tower is called the Great because of its height.
The four-storey Assumption Belfry, with its single gilded dome, was built beside the bell tower by Petrok Maliy in 1532 to 43. It holds 21 bells, the largest of which, the 64- tonne Assumption Bell, traditionally tolled three times when the tsar died. Outside the bell tower is the enormous Tsar Bell. This is the largest in the world, it weighs over 200 tonnes and is a sight to see. This world famous bell attracts loads of tourists from around the globe every year.
Great Kremlin Palace
My second pick from Kremlins architectural collection is the Great Kremlin Palace.The Impressive 125m facade of this yellow and white palace is best admired from the Kremlin embankment, just outside the Kremlin walls. The Great Kremlin Palace was built to replace the 18th century Kremlin Palace. In 1837 Tsar Nicholas I commissioned the Great Kremlin Palace as the Moscow residence of the royal family, where they stayed when visiting from St Petersburg, then the capital. This Palace was designed by a team of architects led by Konstantin Ton, and it took 12 years to build. On the palaces ground floor are the luxurious private rooms of the royal family. The state chambers, on the first floor, include several vast ceremonial halls. The imposing St Georges Hall has white walls engraved in gold with the names of those awarded the Order of St George, one of Russias highest military decorations.
Trinity Tower
This tower takes its name from the Trinity Monastery of St Sergius, which once had a mission nearby. The towers Trinity Gate used to be the entrance for patriarchs and the tsars wives and daughters. Today it is one of only two that admit visitors from around the globe. The other is in the Borovitskaya Tower to the southwest. At 76 m high, the seven-storey Trinity Tower is the Kremlins tallest. It was built in 1495 to 99 and in 1516 was linked by a bridge over the Neglinnaya river to the Kutafya Tower. The river now runs underground and the Kutafya Tower is the sole survivor of the circle of towers that were originally built to defend the Kremlin walls.
Cathedral of the Annunciation
The Cathedral of the Annunciation is a wholly Russian architectural design. Commissioned by Ivan III in 1484 as a royal chapel, it stands be-side the Faceted Palace. The cathedral, built by architects from Pskov , originally had three domes and open galleries on all sides but, after a fire in 1547, the corner chapels were added and the galleries were enclosed. On the south facade is the Groznenskiy Porch, which was added by Ivan the Terrible. The whole of the interior of the cathedral, including the galleries, is painted with frescoes. Three of the greatest masters of icon painting in Russia contributed to the iconostasis, widely considered the finest in Russia. Theophanes the Greek painted the images of Christ, the Virgin and the Archangel Gabriel in the Deesis Tier, while the Icon of the Archangel Michael on this tier is attributed to Andrey Rublev, also several of the icons including The Annunciation and The Nativity were painted by Rublev. Most of the other icons in this tier, including the The Last Supper and The Crucifixion are the work of Prokhor Gorodetskiy.
Cathedral of the Archangel
This was the last of the great cathedrals in the Kremlin to be built. It was commissioned by Ivan III in 1505, shortly before his death. Designed by a Venetian architect, Aleviz Novyy, it is a skilful combination of Early-Russian and Italian Renaissance architecture.The most striking of the Italian features is the scallop shell motif underneath the zakomary gables.This site was the burial place for Moscows princes and tsars from 1340. The walls, pillars and domes of the cathedral are covered with superb frescoes painted in 1652 to 66 by a team of artists led by Semen Ushakov, the head of the icon workshop in the State Armoury. There are over 60 full-length idealized portraits of Russian rulers, as well as some striking images of the Archangel Michael,traditionally the protector of the rulers of early Moscow. The fresco in the cathedrals central cupola depicts the threefold nature of God. The Father holds the Son on his lap and the Holy Spirit, in the form of a white dove, hovers between them.
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