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Church of the Exaltation of the Cross in Shuya

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This church is a unique example of architecture from the late 17th century, preserving both its volumetric composition and internal structure. It is adorned with facade decor in the classical style. A massive two-light square base with a four-pitched roof is joined by lowered rectangular volumes of the altar with rounded eastern corners and a narrower western narthex. On the northern side, there is a two-story chapel built in 1823. Wide pilasters, which were later transformed into Ionic fluted pilasters, divide the walls of the square base into panels. The facades are topped with a wide attic tier featuring rectangular panels instead of traditional zakomaras. The eastern altar facade is particularly expressive. In its center is a four-column portico made of paired Tuscan columns with a triangular pediment. A three-part window is located in the wide central intercolumniation. Three-quarter Corinthian columns in the pilasters support the triangular pediment, into which an arched completion of the central opening is embedded. The upper part retains an Empire-style metal grille. Fragments of painted compositions have survived in the panels of the attic tier.

Inside, four massive columns are shifted to the east, and a pair of columns and a supporting arch have been added from the east to support the central light dome. The main volume is covered with barrel vaults. The altar is connected to the church by three wide arches and is covered with vaulted ceilings. The western narthex has a transverse barrel vault with arches above the openings.

The tempera paintings were created between 1823 and 1828 by the Teykov painter Timofey Medvedev, funded by the Shuya merchants Kiselev and Posylin. It is one of the most expressive examples of murals from the first half of the 19th century, combining the Baroque style with iconographic techniques, characteristic of Medvedev's early work. The color palette of the paintings, judging by the surviving fragments, is based on a combination of pure and transparent tones. The murals have survived on the vaults, in the lunettes, upper parts of the side walls, and supporting arches.

The drum, separated at the base by a plaster cornice, is divided into four parts by wide grisaille stripes depicting the evangelists. The barrel vaults feature compositions on biblical themes, framed in various configurations determined by their placement on the vault. The supporting arches depict "The Carrying of the Cross," "The Deposition from the Cross," and "The Burial." In the lunettes of the southern wall under the vaults are "Moses with the Tablets" and "The Last Supper," while in the lunettes of the northern wall are "The Exodus from Egypt" and "The Washing of the Feet." The free space on the vaults and walls is decorated with images of grisaille coffers, rosettes, and acanthus.

Geo point

Церковь Воздвижения Креста в Шуе

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