EXCURSION

On November 13 there will be free Suzdal sightseeing guided bus and walking tour for all participants of the Conference.

The tour program includes: main architectural sightseeings such as Kremlin, Spaso-Evfimiyev monastery, Spaso-Preobrazhensky cathedral, Pokrovsky acting convent, Museum of Wooden Masterpieces and some other museums.

Registration

Departure time: 9.30; 10.00

Tour duration 3 hours and a half

Those who would like to take part in the tour shall register on the website for groups to be arranged. When register to the Conference please do not forget to receive your boarding tickets.

Initially Suzdal Kremlin was the core around which medieval ensemble of Suzdal grew. At the turn of 11-12 centuries a fortress was built here, and it was surrounded with a ring of earthworks. Logged walls with towers were built at the top of the earthworks.

The most ancient construction of the town – Cathedral of Birth of the Blessed Virgin of 13-16 centuries is located in the Kremlin. It was build at the place of the cathedral of Vladimir Monomakh period. The Cathedral is made of cavern limestone and adorned with relieves, masks and corbel. Its facades are adorned with female masks and perspective portals and arcaded frieze – with floral ornament.

In south and west narthexes there are ancient folding doors – “golden gates” of 13 century made with technique of “fire gilding”. Inside the cathedral is covered with blue colors of later paintings under which it’s possible to see picturesque ancient fragments. There is already a carved iconostasis. Graves of the members of the most famous boyar and princely families such as Shuyskiye, Shuyskiye-Skopiny and Belskiye are located in the cathedral necropolis. Also sons of Yury Dolgoruky sleep there.

There is Chamber of the Chrism in front of the cathedral. From a low staircase topped with green tegulate hipped roof, stairs lead to spacious entry, and after wide portal there is a large room of Episcopal house. In the center of the room there is a long table with chairs and Archbishop’s armchair at the head of the table. The walls are adorned with portraits of tzars and Suzdal bishops, also the room is adorned with magnificent ceiling lamps and two Holland stoves.

As for today Suzdal Kremlin is a museum with many expositions dedicated to history of Suzdal land, famous people taking important place in its history, treasures from monasteries and churches, Old Russian painting, arts and crafts.

Spaso-Evfimiyev monastery was founded in 1352 by Konstantin Vasilievich, prince of Suzdal and Nizhny Novgorod, as male mansion of the Saint Savior. It is located on the north from the town and then it was behind its borders, so it functioned like an outpost. Evfimy, the first hegumen of the convent, was canonized in the beginning of 16 century, and his gained hallows were acknowledged as saint and were kept in the monastery, in the cathedral of the Savior (today it’s a side chapel of Preobrazhensky cathedral).

There are several architectural monuments on the territory of the monastery: campaniles, hipped roofs, Uspenskaya refectory church, magnificent Spaso-Preobrazhensky cathedral, Nikolskaya church with hospital block and Nadvratnaya Blagoveschenskaya church. All these buildings were erected gradually from 16 till 18 centuries.

The walls of Spaso-Evfimiyev monastery are of light pink color, and each of twelve towers of the monastery is unique. Some scenes of the famous film «Andrey Rublev» by Mr. Tarkovsky were made near the monastery on the high bank of Kamenka river, and also Dmitry Pozharsky was buried on the monastery territory.

Massive Spaso-Preobrazhensky cathedral (16-19 centuries) is the central building of the monastery, it was completed and extended several times. The cathedral is crowned with large five onion domes, and its interior is very rich. Paintings of the end of 17 century are made by Gury Nikitin and Sila Slavin, masters from Kostroma. When the cathedral was reconstructed murals of 16 century with description of life of higumen Evfimy were found in the south side chapel and then partly cleaned by the team of A.P. Nekrasov.

A small square in front of Spaso-Preobrazhensky cathedral is surrounded with two more strange buildings - campanile and Uspenskaya refectory church.

Uspenskaya church (1525) is a unique sample of Russian art of building of 15-16 centuries, and one of the earliest architectural monuments of hipped roofs type. The church is famous for its octagonal hipped roof put on the levels of corbel arches and massive quadrangular frame. There are three apses separated with faces from its east side which have narrow windows. Bottom parts of the apses are of original decoration consisting small corbel arches with small pots filled with lime and inserted in facade with necks, making correct circumferential shapes. It’s a very rare method of decoration of building facade.

Campanile (16-17 centuries) is of very complex structure and long history of building. Initially it was erected as nonahedral pillar church of John the Baptist «for bells». With its style it looks like its neighbor - Uspenskaya church. In the end of 16 century one highly raised arch was built to the south side of the pillar, and in 17 century - two more ones. So there appeared a new type of campanile with galleries for bells. When the hipped roof was destroyed in 17 century the campanile was crowned with clock tower. And you can see it even today. Participants of the excursion can hear the concert of bells.

Pokrovsky convent is another object of the excursion program.

The convent founded in 1365 is located on the right bank of Kamenka river in the north part of Suzdal. Architectural ensemble of today was created in 16 century when the convent turned into a place of exile of disgraced Russian queens and representatives of noble families who took the veil (Solomonia Saburova, wife of Vasily the Third, Evdokia Lopukhina, wife of Peter the Great and others).

As for the today the convent is acting and there are Pokrovsky cathedral, asylum and various outbuildings on its territory. Unique icons and arts of embroidery are the main values of the cathedral. There is also a writ hut on the territory of the monastery - it’s a very rare monument. It’s worth mentioning that in Pokrovsky monastery there is a reconstructed bakery that was destroyed many years ago. Recently the territory of the convent was transferred to church, and in 2009 a refuge for orphan girls was open here.

Museum of Wooden Masterpieces is another object of the excursion program. A project of creation of a Museum of wooden masterpieces and peasant life appeared in 1960. V.M. Anisimov, employee of restoration workshops was the author. It was decided to locate the museum on the bank of Kamenka river on the outskirts of Suzdal, on the place of nonextant Dmitriebsky monastery, which was one of the earliest ones in Suzdal - of 11 century. From different villages of Suzdal region people brought undamaged wooden building: churches, huts and household outbuildings. An empty place on high bank of Kamenka was filled with units made by man.

It is an original village which concentrates everything from 18-19 centuries the reached us, was not burnt in fires, broken for firewood or destroyed during hard years. The streets of the villages are composed of brought houses and buildings, and high domes of wooden churches and wings of windmills dominate above them. Museum of wooden masterpieces reflects not only village architecture but life of Russian peasants also.