Description of the attraction
The Cathedral of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary is an Orthodox cathedral of the Diocese of Wroclaw-Szczecin, located in Wroclaw. Earlier on the site of the cathedral there was a chapel at the cemetery, which burned down in 1400. Built in the Gothic style, the cathedral was made of bricks, had a nave measuring 32.7 meters long and almost 25 meters wide. In 1526, the church passed into the hands of Protestants, and in the period from 1741 to 1920 it was a garrison church.
During the Second World War, the cathedral was destroyed by 70%, the interior was partially destroyed, partially stolen. All wall paintings were lost, the roof was burned, the ceilings collapsed. The restoration work began in 1959 and lasted for two years. In June 1963, the Orthodox Church incorporated the Cathedral of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary into the Diocese of Wroclaw. In 1985, the reconstruction of the tower was completed, the roof was replaced with a new one.
Despite numerous renovations and destruction, the cathedral has preserved several valuable pieces of decoration to this day. The most important of these is the Gothic altarpiece of the main altar with scenes from the life of St. Barbara. The church has two iconostases: a modern one, located in front of the altar, with icons by Jerzy Novoselsky, the greatest Orthodox artist and icon painter. The interior of the cathedral is decorated with frescoes made under the direction of Jerzy Nowoselski.
