Description of the attraction
The Catholic Church of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary is one of the oldest churches in the city of Odessa, preserved from the middle of the 19th century to the present day. It is located at 33 Ekaterininskaya Street.
The first Roman Catholic church appeared in Odessa immediately after the city was founded. It was a small wooden prayer house for Catholics. In 1805, the first mayor of Odessa, Duke de Richelieu, allocated a whole block on the street. Catherine's for the construction of the temple. And already in 1822 the first small church was erected according to the project of architect. F. Frapolli. The temple that we see today was built in 1853 according to the project of the city architect. F. Morandi by the Polish architect F. Gonsioronovsky. In the same year, it was consecrated by Bishop Ferdinand of Cannes.
Like many other places of worship, the temple went through auspicious and difficult periods. In 1935 the monastery was closed, and its premises were transferred to the German-Bulgarian Club, and then to the Local History Museum. During the Romanian occupation, the temple resumed its work, but in 1949, after the war, it was closed again. In the cathedral, marble altars, beautiful stone vaults were destroyed, and even the marble floor was destroyed. The looted building housed a sports complex. In 1991 the temple began a new life, it was handed over to believers and was gradually restored.
The cathedral is made of stone in the Romanesque-Gothic style and has a Latin cross in terms of its foundation. Above the main entrance there is a clock with a Roman dial, over which a sophisticated dome with a bell tower rises. The dome is crowned with a tower with a strict cross. In 2008, the facade of the temple was decorated with sculptures of Pope John Paul II and Pope St. Martin. Now in the temple you can see the main shrine of the south of Ukraine - the Kasperovsky miraculous image of the Mother of God.
