List of buildings of pre-Mongol Rus'
This is a complete list of the currently existing buildings created in the Kievan Rus' before the Mongol invasions of the 1230s. Almost all these buildings are churches: only three secular buildings survived from the period.
Most of the churches were completely rebuilt over the years and lost some essential features of the Old Rus architecture. Some were destroyed in the 20th century and then replicas were built years later. These churches are included in the list. Churches that were destroyed and subsequently rebuilt without any attempts of scientific reconstruction (the Assumption Church of Virgin Pirogoshcha and the Saint Michael Cathedral of St. Michael's Golden-Domed Monastery, both in Kyiv) are not included.
The list is organized geographically, roughly corresponding to the main principalities of the Kievan Rus. Inside these divisions, the entries are sorted by the date of the first creation.
Kiev Land
Bib | Name | Location | Creation year | Comments | Photo | Category on Commons |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1. | The Saint Sophia's Cathedral, Kyiv | Kyiv | 1017–1022 or before 1037[1] | One of the two oldest survived buildings of the Kievan Rus.[1] The exterior was considerably modified in the 17th and 18th centuries. | ![]() | Category |
2. | The Golden Gate, Kyiv | Kyiv | 1037 | By 1982, the gate was a ruin, and, with the exception of the lowest parts of the walls, it was reconstructed in 1982. | ![]() | Category |
3. | The Assumption Cathedral of the Kyiv Pechersk Lavra | Kyiv | 1073–1089 | Destroyed in 1941, reconstructed in 2000. The exterior was considerably altered in the 18th century. | Category | |
4. | The Trinity Church of the Kyiv Pechersk Lavra | Kyiv | ca 1106 | The exterior was considerably altered in the 18th century. | ||
5. | The Saint Michael Church of the Vydubychi Monastery | Kyiv | 1070–1088 | Only the western side. | ![]() | |
6. | The Church of the Saviour at Berestove | Kyiv | Beginning of the 11th century | Only the western side. | ![]() | Category |
7. | The Saint Cyril Church of the St. Cyril's Monastery | Kyiv | 1140–1146 | Exterior was strongly altered. | ![]() | |
8. | The Saint George Church | Kaniv | 1144 | Exterior altered. | ![]() | |
9. | The Saint Basil Church | Ovruch | ca 1190 | Collapsed in 1846, restored in 1907–09. | ![]() |
Chernigov Land
Bib | Name | Location | Creation year | Comments | Photo | Category on Commons |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1. | The Transfiguration Cathedral | Chernihiv | Before 1036[1] | One of the two oldest survived buildings of the Kievan Rus.[1] The exterior was considerably modified in the 17th and 18th centuries. | ![]() | Category |
2. | The Cathedral of Saint Boris and Saint Gleb | Chernihiv | Between 1097 and 1123 | ![]() | Category | |
3. | The Assumption Cathedral of Yeletsky Monastery | Chernihiv | Early 12th century | Exterior was considerably altered. | ![]() | |
4. | The Saint Iliya Church | Chernihiv | Early 12th century | Exterior was considerably altered. | ||
5. | The Piatnytska Church | Chernihiv | Early 13th century | Considerably damaged during World War II, subsequently restored. | ![]() |
Pereyaslavl Land
Bib | Name | Location | Creation year | Comments | Photo | Category on Commons |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1. | The Saint Michael Church | Oster | 1098? | Destroyed, only the apse survived. | ![]() |
Novgorod Land
Bib | Name | Location | Creation year | Comments | Photo | Category on Commons |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1. | The Saint Sophia Cathedral in Novgorod | Veliky Novgorod | 1045–1052 | The oldest surviving building in Northern Russia. | ![]() | Category |
2. | The Saint Nicholas Cathedral at Yaroslav's Court | Veliky Novgorod | 1113–1136 | Category | ||
3. | The Katholikon of the Antoniev Monastery | Veliky Novgorod | 1117–1122 | The upper parts were altered. | ![]() | Category |
4. | The Katholikon of the Yuriev Monastery | Veliky Novgorod | 1119–1130 | ![]() | Category | |
5. | The Katholikon of the Ivanovsky Monastery | Pskov | 1140s or earlier | ![]() | ||
6. | The Katholikon of the Mirozhsky Monastery | Pskov | Before 1156 | The exterior was altered, the frescoes are intact | ||
7. | The Katholikon of the Dormition Monastery | Staraya Ladoga | 1160s | ![]() | Category | |
8. | The St. George's Church | Staraya Ladoga | ca 1165 | ![]() | Category | |
9. | The Arkazhi Church | Veliky Novgorod | 1179 | Substantially rebuilt in the 17th century. | ![]() | Category |
10. | The Titmouse Hill Church | Veliky Novgorod | 1192 | ![]() | ||
11. | The Nereditsa Church | Veliky Novgorod | 1198 | Destroyed during the World War II, subsequently restored, but the original frescoes have been lost. | ![]() | Category |
12. | The Katholikon of the Transfiguration Monastery | Staraya Russa | 1198 | Completely rebuilt in the 1442, only the lowest parts of the walls survived. Rebuilt again in the 17th century. | ![]() | |
13. | The Church of St. Paraskevi of Iconium | Veliky Novgorod | 1207 | The vaults rebuilt at a later date. | ![]() | Category |
14. | The Peryn Chapel | Veliky Novgorod | 1220s | ![]() | Category |
Vladimir-Suzdal Land
Bib | Name | Location | Creation year | Comments | Photo | Category on Commons |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1. | The Transfiguration Cathedral | Pereslavl-Zalessky | 1152–1157 | Category | ||
2. | The Church of Boris and Gleb | Kideksha | 1152 | The top part was rebuilt in the 17th century. | ![]() | Category |
3. | The Assumption Cathedral | Vladimir | 1158–1160 | Expanded in 1185-1189 | Category | |
4. | The Golden Gate | Vladimir | 1158–1164 | Considerably altered by later construction. | ![]() | Category |
5. | Andrey Bogolyubsky Palace | Bogolyubovo | 1158 | Only fragments, including a tower, survived. | ![]() | |
6. | The Church of the Intercession on the Nerl | Vladimir | 1165-1166 | ![]() | Category | |
7. | The Cathedral of Saint Demetrius | Vladimir | 1191 or 1194–1197 | ![]() | Category | |
8. | The Assumption Cathedral of the Assumption Princess Monastery | Vladimir | 1200–1202 | Completely rebuilt around 1500, only lower parts of the walls survive. | ![]() | |
9. | The Nativity Cathedral | Suzdal | 1222–1225 | The exterior and the roof have been rebuilt. | ![]() | Category |
10. | The Saint George Cathedral | Yuryev-Polsky | 1230–1234[2] | The cathedral collapsed in the 1460s and was repaired in a different form.[2] | ![]() | Category |
Smolensk Land
Bib | Name | Location | Creation year | Comments | Photo | Category on Commons |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1. | The Church of Saint Peter and Saint Paul on Gorodyanka | Smolensk | 1146 | Restored in 1963 | Category | |
2. | The Church of Saint John the Evangelist | Smolensk | 1146 | Only walls survived, everything else was rebuilt in the 18th century. | ||
3. | The Saint Michael Church | Smolensk | 1180–1197 | The roof was altered. | ![]() | Category |
Polotsk Land
Bib | Name | Location | Creation year | Comments | Photo | Category on Commons |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1. | The Saint Sophia Cathedral in Polotsk | Polotsk | Between 1044 and 1066 | Only fragments of the original cathedral survived. | ![]() | Category |
2. | The Transfiguration Church of the Saint Efrosinya Monastery | Polotsk | 1128-1156 | ![]() | Category | |
3. | The Annunciation Church | Vitebsk | 12th century | Destroyed in 1961, rebuilt in 1993–1998 incorporating the remains of the walls. | ![]() | Category |
Grodno Land
Bib | Name | Location | Creation year | Comments | Photo | Category on Commons |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1. | The Saint Boris and Saint Gleb Kalozha Church | Grodno | Before 1183 | Partially survived, some walls were lost. | Category |
Volyn Land
Bib | Name | Location | Creation year | Comments | Photo | Category on Commons |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1. | The Assumption Cathedral | Volodymyr | 1160 | Collapsed in 1829, rebuilt in 1896–1900. | Category | |
2. | The Stołpie Tower | Stołpie (near Chełm) | 12th–13th centuries | Partially ruined |
Galich Land
Bib | Name | Location | Creation year | Comments | Photo | Category on Commons |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1. | The Saint Pantaleon Church | Shevchenkove (near Halych) | ca 1200 | Rebuilt in 1611 with considerable modifications, restored in 1998. The only surviving building of the Galician school of architecture. | ![]() | Category |
References
Notes
- ^ a b c d Rappoport, p.22
- ^ a b Воронин, Н. Н. (1974). Владимир, Боголюбово, Суздаль, Юрьев-Польской. Книга-спутник по древним городам Владимирской земли. (in Russian) (4th ed.). Moscow: Искусство. pp. 262–290. Retrieved September 16, 2011.
Sources
- Раппопорт, П. А. (1982). Русская архитектура X — XIII вв. Каталог памятников. Saint Petersburg: Наука. Retrieved February 26, 2012.