SS. Peter and Paul Cathedral

Categories / Architecture/Architectural Monuments/Religious Architecture (see also Religion.Church)
Categories / Religion. Church/Places of Worship (see also Architecture and Urban Planning)
SS. PETER AND PAUL CATHEDRAL (Cathedral of the Apostles Peter and Paul), an architectural monument in the style of the Petrine Baroque. The cathedral was constructed in 1712-33 (by architect D. Trezzini) on the site of a wooden church of the same name (1703-04). Until 1859, it was the main cathedral of the city. The three-tier belfry of the SS. Peter and Paul Cathedral, which is 122.5 m tall, crowned by a gilded spire with a figure of a flying angel, dominates the city skyline and has become a well-known symbol of St. Petersburg. Inside, the basilica-type building is divided by pylons into three naves and adorned with extended pilasters along the walls. The gilded carved iconostasis was made in Moscow in 1722-26 (architect I. P. Zarudny, engraving by T. Ivanov and I. Telega; icons were painted by M. A. Merkuryev and F. Artemyev), stucco moulding was done by I. Rossi and A. Quadri, and paintings by G. Gsell, V. Yaroshevsky, M. Zakharov, and others. In 1756-57, Ss Peter and Paul Cathedral was restored after a fire; in 1776 the chiming clock by master B. Oort Krass from Holland was assembled in the belfry. In 1773, the side-altar was consecrated in the name of St. Catherine. In 1829, the damaged figure of the angel was repaired by P. Telushkin, who climbed the spire without any scaffolding. In 1857-58, the wooden spire was replaced with the metal one (architect K. A. Ton, engineer D. I. Zhuravsky). In 1864-66, the old Royal Gates were replaced with new bronze gates (by architect A. I. Krakau). In 1875-77, D. Boldini painted new plafonds; and new bells were hung in 1905. All Russian Emperors from Peter the Great to Alexander III, their wives, some Grand Princes and Grand Princesses (see Imperial Burial Vault) were buried in SS. Peter and Paul Cathedral. From the north-east the Grand Prince Burial Vault adjoins the cathedral and the Commandant cemetery is located on the south-eastern corner. The cathedral also housed captured enemy banners, some of them are now located in the Hermitage. In 1919, SS. Peter and Paul Cathedral was closed, in 1924 it was turned into a museum; the majority of valuable objects of the late 17th - early 18th centuries (silver utensils, books, vestments, icons) were transferred to various Russian museums. During the Great Patriotic War of 1941-45 SS. Peter & Paul Cathedral suffered damage, by 1952 its facades were restored, and the interior decoration was completed by 1956-57. In 1954, the building was given over to the Museum of City History. In 1998, the remains of Emperor Nicholas II and members of his family, which had not been recognized as genuine by the Russian Orthodox Church, were buried in St. Catherine side-altar of the cathedral. Since, the 1990s memorial services for Russian Emperors have been held regularly in SS. Peter and Paul Cathedral. Church services resumed in 2000.

References: Антонов В. В., Кобак А. В. Святыни Санкт-Петербурга: Ист.-церков. энцикл. СПб., 1994. Т. 1. С. 112-116; Петропавловский собор: Усыпальница рос. императоров / Авт.-сост. С. В. Трофимов. СПб., 1998. См. также лит. при ст. Петропавловская крепость и Императорская усыпальница.

V. V. Antonov. Alexander III, Emperor
Artemyev F.
Boldini Giovanni
Gsell Georg
Ivanov Trofim
Krakau Georg Alexander (Alexander Ivanovich)
Merkuryev M.A.
Nicholas II, Emperor
Oort Krass B.-F.
Peter I, Emperor
Quadri Antonio
Rossi Ignacio Ludovico
Telega Ivan
Telushkin Peter
Ton Konstantin Andreevich
Trezzini Domenico
Yaroshevsky Vasily
Zakharov Mikhail Alexandrovich
Zarudny Ivan Petrovich
Zhuravsky Dmitry Ivanovich
Петропавловская крепость
Антонов В. В., Кобак А. В. Святыни Санкт-Петербурга: Ист.-церков. энцикл. СПб., 1994
Петропавловский собор: Усыпальница рос. императоров / Авт.-сост. С. В. Трофимов. СПб., 1998 Baroque
Imperial Burial Vault
Grand Princes’ Burial Vault
Komendantskoe Cemetery
Hermitage
Hermitage
St. Petersburg Museum of History
1712
1733
1756
1998