Description of the attraction
Today the Cathedral of the Transfiguration of the Savior is the oldest surviving and functioning temple in the city of Yakutsk. This cathedral has always been held in high esteem among the faithful parishioners. He personified the coming of Christianity to the Yakut people. Local craftsmen decorated the temple with murals, and icons - with carved frames and looked after flowering plants in the courtyard of the cathedral.
The construction of the majestic Orthodox Cathedral of the Transfiguration of the Savior was carried out in 1838 - 1845. The temple was built with funds donated by the large merchants Solovievs, who at that time were successful suppliers of expensive and valuable materials from Yakutia to the center of the Russian Empire.
Initially, the temple was planned to be built of white brick, but the Yakut architects showed a desire to give the new temple a certain solemnity and insisted that the church be built of red brick. The cathedral is made in the pseudo-Russian architectural style. Sturdy tongs adorn the façade of the cathedral's quadrangle.
The temple is crowned with five beautiful chapters, framed by shining gilded domes. There is a unique tent-roofed bell tower. It is here that young bell-ringers learn all the intricacies of bell business. The Transfiguration Church was richly decorated, it housed a beautiful iconostasis.
For quite a long time, the rector of the cathedral was a well-known educator and missionary - Archpriest Dmitry Khitrov, who in 1868 took monasticism, becoming the first bishop of Yakut and Vilyui Dionysius.
In the 30s. the Cathedral of the Transfiguration of the Savior was destroyed by atheists. Only the dilapidated lower part survived from it. Various city organizations are located here. After the library, which was located here last, was removed from the building, it completely fell into disrepair and began to gradually collapse, losing its original appearance. The revival of the cathedral began only in 1993 after the opening of the Yakutsk diocese. In 1994, the grand opening of the cathedral took place.
Today, the Yakutsk Cathedral of the Transfiguration of the Savior is a real symbol of the Old City of Yakutsk.
