Description of the attraction
The Church of Gregory the Theologian was erected in the 1670s, along with other buildings on the territory of the Metropolitan Garden. In the 16th century, the chambers of the Grigorievsky Monastery were located on the site of the church, which was abolished in the 17th century during the construction of a new Bishops' court. The new church was built on the site of the old foundation. At the same time, she perfectly fit into the general panorama of the Rostov Kremlin.
The original decoration of the interior of the temple was destroyed during a fire in 1730. It remains unknown whether the church of Gregory the Theologian in the 17th century, like all other churches of the Rostov bishop's house, was painted with fresco painting.
In the 1740s, under Archbishop Arseny, the interior of the church of Gregory the Theologian was decorated with stucco and ceiling glue painting. The greenish walls of the church are divided inside by fluted pilasters, between them the space is filled with stucco moldings with motifs of flowers, cartouches and shells. Their juicy and rough forms are made with a whimsical decorative taste and a greater temperament than give out the hand of a master from the common people.
In cartouches - Gospel scenes, on the western wall - "Prepolovene", "Annunciation", "Conversation with Nicodemus", on the southern wall of the temple - "Entry into Jerusalem", on the north - "The Nativity of the Mother of God", in the drum - "Fatherland", in the altar - "The Last Supper", "Hosts", "Prayer for the Cup".
In 1884, the interior of the church was renovated in the Russian style by the artel of N. M. Safonov. The restoration work was carried out at the expense of the peasant I. A. Rublev under the control of the Moscow Archaeological Society. During this restoration, the cartouche painting was altered. In the lower part of the western wall, in the central cube, the hallmarks were written: "Sermon on the Mount", "Expulsion of the merchants from the temple", "Saturation of ten thousand with ten loaves". On the eastern wall is the figure of Anthony the Roman, who floats on a stone to Novgorod from Rome. The window slopes are filled with a herbal ornament in the "Russian" style, which consists of green and red shoots on a yellow background. A grass pattern from top to bottom covers the walls and vaults of the temple, the porch and the vestibules. At the same time, patterned frames with multi-colored glass were inserted into the windows.
In the 1880s, a new iconostasis was built in the Church of St. Gregory the Theologian, which is decorated with gilded flat carvings on a red background. The royal gates for the iconostasis were made by the Rostov carver Nikolsky in the image of the royal gates of the Theological Church on Ishna. Today, these gates have been moved to the Ishnenskaya church, and the real unique gates from the church of St. John the Theologian, carved in 1562 by the monk Isaiah, are now on display at the Rostov Museum.
All icons of the five-tiered iconostasis were made in the 1880s by the masters of the Safonov artel, including local ones: "The Mother of God with the forthcoming Anthony and Theodosius", "The Almighty with the Gospel", "Stephen of Perm in his Life", "Gregory the Theologian", "Venerable Elizabeth”,“Conception of John the Baptist”.
