The Museum of St. Sophia Cathedral

The Museum of St. Sophia Cathedral

A VIRTUAL TOUR   TIME OF CONSTRUCTION   HISTORY    ARCHITECRURE  THE MOSAICS AND FRESCOES  GRAFFITI  BAROQUE MASTERPIECES

NECROPOLIS   THE ARCITECTURAL ENSEMBLE   THE VISITING RULES   CONTACTS

sobor

   The grand Cathedral of St. Sophia the Wisdom of God has already been located in the historical center of ancient Kyiv for one thousand years. It is the most ancient Christian church that is fully preserved in the East Slavic area. Being born in the era of Christianization of Rus’ it became the cradle of Kyivan Christianity, statehood and culture, development of which was carried out under the sign of Sophia the Wisdom, which patrons the world. Saint Sophia the Wisdom of God, after whom the cathedral was named, is one of the fundamental ideologemes of Eastern Christianity. It is associated with the image of sovereign statehood wisely kept by God. The idea of Saint Sophia had been preserved as a basis of spiritual life of the entire population for centuries. The humanity can’t exist without this idea as a Christian nation, as a Church, because the idea of St. Sophia was identified with the wisdom of new Christian religion.

 

        St. Sophia Cathedral in Kyiv is a symbolic monument. If the universal symbol of the Church of Wisdom has been and remains St. Sophia in Constantinople, the St. Sophia in Kyiv has been such symbol for the Eastern Slavonic world. For centuries, it has been the main shrine of Rus’-Ukraine, the core of higher wisdom that harmonizes the life of the people, protects and lights its fate. St. Sophia Cathedral is a real memorial of the Christianization of Rus’-Ukraine, monument of princely piety, richness and glory, state’s wisdom and generosity. It has come to our time from the heroic epic times of Kyivan Rus’, the day of Volodymyr the Great and Yaroslav the Wise.

   St. Sophia Cathedral is the best proof of its high historical and spiritual mission. It preserves excellent ancient architecture and the most complete in the world ensemble of original mosaics and frescoes of the 11th century – 260 square meters of mosaics and 3000 square meters of frescoes. They are true masterpieces of the world art. The greatness and the unique beauty of St. Sophia in Kyiv made it a glory of the true wonder of the world. St. Sophia Cathedral reminds us who our ancestors were and who we should be. For this it is kept by God and people.

 

________________________________________________________________________unesco_logo