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Church of the Icon of the Mother of God 'Sign' in Bykovka

Фото 1
In 1815, Vasily Lvovich Demidov received permission to build two stone churches: a large summer one and a small winter one, as the prepared materials were more than enough for one building. The construction lasted 15 years. The churches were completed by 1820, but the interior finishing and the construction of the church fence took another 10 years. The Sign Church was consecrated on November 23, 1829, and the church in honor of the Nativity of Christ on July 12, 1830.

The Sign Church is a small brick building of rectangular shape. It has never had domes, only a small cupola. The walls of the narthex and the altar apse are decorated with horizontal rustication. During the Soviet era, the church housed a training workshop for a school. Now, in the restored Sign Church, as in the 19th century, services are held in the cold season.

The church in honor of the Nativity of Christ is designed in the classical style and is one of the most interesting churches of this style in the region. L.V. Dal suggested that Vasily Lvovich Demidov attracted metropolitan architects for its construction. The volumetric-spatial composition, the strictness of classical canons, and the beauty of the church's proportions significantly surpass the level of provincial buildings. The Nativity Church resembles the Ascension Church in Belavka: a dome on a large drum, a single-apsed altar, a refectory, a tiered bell tower above the western entrance, arched windows, horizontal rustication on the walls, paired porticos of the Doric order, and a broken pediment on the northern and southern facades.

The bell tower was built simultaneously with the church and is harmoniously integrated into its composition. Previously, a small dome was topped with a spire with a cross. In 1993, lightning struck the spire, and its wooden base burned down. It collapsed, and now the dome is made of galvanized iron, while the restored spire is shorter than before. The church operated until the Nativity of Christ in 1937 and was closed after the festive service. A new life for the church began in 1994, when prayer once again resonated within its walls.

Geo point

Церковь иконы Божией Матери “Знамение” в Быковке

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