Russian Orthodox Church, Russian Orthodox church in the Südvorstadt, Dresden, Germany
The Russian Orthodox Church of Saint Simeon of the Wonderful Mountain is a brick building clad in sandstone, 33 meters long and 13 meters wide, with a 40-meter bell tower. Its five onion domes represent Christ and the four Evangelists. The facades feature decorative bands and small arches, and the central tower is topped by a gold spire and cupola.
The church was built between 1872 and 1874 to designs by Harald Julius von Bosse and Karl Weissbach, funded largely by state councillor Simeon Wikulin, after whom it is named. It was consecrated in 1874. In February 1945 it was the only building in its wider area to survive the air raids relatively intact, though the bell tower was badly damaged; restoration ran from 1985 to 2007.
The church is named after Saint Simeon Stylites the Younger, patron saint of Simeon Vikulin, who donated about seven tenths of the 520,000 Reichsmark building sum. The Dutch painter James Marshall created the archaic-style icons of the iconostasis; he was known for ceiling paintings in the Semperoper. The parish today numbers over 1,000 members of Russian, Greek and Bulgarian origin.
The church is administered by the Moscow Patriarchate and located at Fritz-Löffler-Straße 19. Plan to contact ahead if you want to visit the interior, as access times are limited and require prior arrangement.
The five onion domes stand for Christ and the four Evangelists. The iconostasis icons were painted by the Dutch artist James Marshall, known for the ceiling paintings in the Semperoper, and the fittings were left unfinished for lack of money.
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