Description of the attraction
In the northern part of the wall of the stone fence of the Spaso-Prilutsky Monastery, there is the previously existing main entrance to the monastery, or as it is also called the Holy Gates, with a small gateway church built in honor of the Ascension of the Lord. The church with a gate, as well as adjacent sections of the north-western wall, is an ancient component of the monastery fence, which was built in the 16th century, immediately after the construction of the Savior Cathedral; the rest of the walls and towers were then still made of wood. After some time, not only the church, but also the Holy Gates were included in the ring of the 17th century walls. The majestic gates form the entrance to the church from the road to Kirillov, Arkhangelsk and Belozersk. The Holy Gates consist of two arched openings: a small one intended for travelers and a large one for passages. Bolshoy proezd is designed in the form of a perspective portal, above which a fresco was located at the beginning of the 20th century; at the moment, the fresco is reminiscent of a metal cabbage roll, located above a large passage.
From the very beginning, the church was consecrated in honor of the holy Great Martyr Theodore Stratilates - the patron saint of the Christian Orthodox army - who keeps the sacred entrance to the monastery. The church had this name until the 19th century. There are many suggestions that the church was consecrated in the name of the angel of the great Tsar Fyodor Ioannovich, who is the son of Ivan the Terrible. Fyodor Ioannovich ascended the throne in 1584, which significantly contributed to the construction of the Spaso-Prilutsky monastery. In the 18th and early 19th centuries, due to fires, the church was very badly damaged and remained in this state until 1815 - then the church was rededicated in honor of the Ascension of the Lord. In this regard, the church was subject to a number of global alterations, the last of which became very unsuccessful (according to the art critic G. K. Lukomsky) and were carried out in 1875.
The Ascension Gate Church is incredibly simple in composition, albeit original. The cubic volume of the building, modeled on the ancient gate structures, is almost completely devoid of altar apses, which is typical for an element of a church building. The completion of the temple is made in the form of a luminous chapter, which was originally erected by two pyramidal-stepped tiers of kokoshniks. The kokoshniks did not correspond at all to the design of the vaults and served as a decoration, further enhancing the harmony of the silhouette of the entire structure. The peculiar decoration of the drum of the head of the Ascension Monastery combines ornamental motives of Pskov-Novgorod and Moscow origin. In the 16th century, it becomes an important element of the external decoration of buildings in the Russian North, where the decorative and artistic influences of Novgorod and Moscow collided. The decorative multi-tiered endings of the Ascension Gate Church repeat the elements of the Savior Cathedral, which gives it those qualities that were highly valued even in Ancient Russia.
The division of the walls is done in a two-part way, which clearly reflects the special internal structure, which is a two-pillar design of the building's decoration. There is a low stone altar barrier between the four-sided pillars. The central box vault is cut by a drum on the sails; the corner parts are covered with rather original small arches of the Pskov type.
According to the monastery inventories of 1684-1693, it can be said that a stone chapel with bells and side wheel clocks was built to the northern part of the stone fence of the monastery. During 1729-1730, the chapel was converted into a bell tower, currently located next to the Ascension Church above the fortress wall. The bell tower has a four-sided prism, which is decorated with kokoshniks and semi-columns at the corners; the bell-eight completed the dome and the elongated tent. Despite the fact that the bell tower has a later origin at the gate church, it was built in the traditions of ancient Russia.
In 1990, the bell tower was transferred to the gateway Church of the Ascension; in 1991 the diocesan monastery was opened.
