St. Isaac's Cathedral is a temple, a brief description of which should begin with the fact that this is not only a holy place, but also a museum. However, here, on certain days, divine services and Orthodox rites are held. St. Isaac's Cathedral is located on the eponymous square and is the largest church in the northern capital of Russia.
The predecessors of the modern temple
The first temple was erected in 1706 in the Admiralty meadow. It was here that Peter I was married in 1712. However, the building was quickly dismantled, as it became clear that the small dimensions of the temple are not suitable for a rapidly developing city.
The second construction began in 1717, 20 meters from the Neva River. And the sovereign himself laid the first stone. The architect was Nikolai Gerbel, but he was not the best “sculptor”, since during the construction of the church vaults cracked and the architectural part was transferred to Gaetano Chiaveri. After a few years, it became clear that the temple would not last long: the foundation was constantly flooded with the waters of the Neva. In 1760, they decided to take it apart.
In 1761, the design of a new temple began. Construction began in 1766, but the architect Rinaldi was not able to complete it, because Catherine II died.
Paul I begins further construction only in 1798. But due to lack of funds, the building is deprived of its greatness and even causes ridicule from contemporaries.
Construction
A brief description of St. Isaac's Cathedral can be continued by the fact that in 1809 a competition was announced for a project for the reconstruction of the temple. In the future, several more competitions were held. Alexander I rejected all the proposals, since he did not want to reconstruct the building, he wanted to erect a completely new structure. But in 1816, drawings of the novice architect Montferrand fell on the sovereign's table. Despite the fact that the drafts were not technically confirmed in any way, the sovereign entrusts the construction to this architect. In 1819, the first stone was laid. However, over the course of several years, the project has been constantly being redesigned, and the construction is not moving.
As a result, they begin to decorate only in 1841. A brief description of St. Isaac's Cathedral is difficult to imagine without the names of the great painters and sculptors of that time. It was Bryullov, Bruni, Riss, Pimenov and others. As a result, all work ends in 1858, and the solemn consecration ceremony takes place on May 30 of the same year.
Soviet period
A brief description of St. Isaac's Cathedral, like other churches, cannot be imagined without the Soviet period, when there were persecutions of believers, mass churches were closed and even destroyed.
In 1918, the cathedral passed into the jurisdiction of the People’s Commissariat. However, in 1919 the church and its property were transferred to the parishioners, who, in turn, were obliged to pay all expenses for the maintenance of the building. In 1922, values were seized: 48 kilograms of gold and about 2 tons of silver were exported from the cathedral. In April of the same year, the Archpriest was arrested. After 6 years, the contract with the parishioners is terminated, and the building passes to the Glavnauka. Already in 1931, an anti-religious museum was opened here.
A brief description of St. Isaac's Cathedral during the Second World War can begin with the fact that the building is heavily affected by bombing. To date, traces of shelling have remained on the walls. During the blockade period, exhibits from suburban museums were kept in the cathedral.
In 1948, the St. Isaac's Cathedral Museum opens in the building, two years later restoration begins - an observation deck is installed on the dome.
Since 1990, services have resumed in the church, and since 2017, they have been held daily.
External and internal decoration of the temple
A brief description of St. Isaac's Cathedral in St. Petersburg and its decoration can be described as follows: the shape of the cathedral is presented in the form of a quadrangle with a grand dome in the middle. A bell tower has been erected in every corner. The walls are encrusted on all sides with colonnades and porticoes, which are made of solid granite - all this is installed on the terraces. The building has 112 columns. The largest bell is decorated not only with the appearance of Isaac, but also with five medallions with images of sovereigns - from Peter I to Nicholas I.
The lining of St. Isaac's Cathedral in a brief description can be represented as follows: the entire decoration is made of marble. On the floor is a chessboard made of marble in different colors. The walls are painted with picturesque drawings. Absolutely all the icons are made in mosaic technique. The most grandiose is the altar face of the Savior. The iconostasis of the altar is inlaid with malachite.
In a brief description of St. Isaac's Cathedral for children, you can include information that this is a real treasury of colored stone. Perhaps no cathedral in the country can boast such a variety and quantity of stones: it is malachite (16 tons), and lapis lazuli (500 kg), and Shoksha porphyry, and marble from different quarries (yellow, pink, red), and black slate . Inlaid the cathedral took 400 kilograms of gold.
Interesting Facts
There is a legend that before the start of construction, the architect Montferrand guessed his quick death at the end of the construction. Some people are sure that for this reason the construction of the temple was so delayed. A month after the construction was completed, the architect really died for an unknown reason.
By the way, one of the first photographs in our country recorded the construction of the temple.