Saints Borys and Hlib Cathedral, Eastern Orthodox cathedral in Chernihiv, Ukraine
Saints Borys and Hlib Cathedral is an Eastern Orthodox church in Chernihiv, Ukraine, built on a cross-shaped plan with three naves and three apses. Its stone facades carry ceramic decorations, and the interior walls are covered with light-toned frescoes.
Prince Davyd Svyatoslavych began the cathedral around 1120 in memory of his son Rostyslav, and was buried in its tomb in 1123. It was damaged in 1239 during Batu's attack, burned in 1611, and was rebuilt as a Dominican church in 1627–1628. Returned to the Orthodox church in 1659, it was restored to its pre-Mongol forms in 1952–1958 under Mykola Kholostenko.
The cathedral is named after Princes Borys and Hlib, the first Rus saints, and Prince Davyd Sviatoslavych began building it in 1120 in memory of his son Rostyslav. Hetman Ivan Mazepa commissioned the silver Royal Gates, made in Augsburg by Philipp Jakob IV Drentwett in 1702; his coat of arms and the date are engraved on the lower leaf. Today the building serves as a museum and as a House of Choral Heritage, where sacred music concerts are held.
The cathedral is now a museum of the National Architectural-Historical Reserve "Chernihiv Ancient" and also serves as the House of Choral Heritage, hosting concerts of sacred music. The galleries that once surrounded the building were not rebuilt; their outline is marked on the ground. The 1672 bell tower was dismantled during the 1950s restoration.
Archaeological work near the cathedral uncovered a stone carving of Simargl, a deity from pre-Christian times shown as a dog-bird creature. This find suggests that older belief systems and Christian traditions coexisted in this area for some time.
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