Description of the attraction
The Church of Constantine and Helena is an Orthodox church, which is one of the main religious and architectural sights of the city of Chisinau. The church was erected back in 1777 on a hill on the banks of the Byk River. The funds for the construction of the temple were donated by a wealthy bourgeoisie, Konstantin Ryshkan.
Initially, the church was located in the small village of Ryshkanovka and was called the Church of the Resurrection of the Lord. In the first half of the XVIII century. the village was assigned to the Orhei district. In 1834 Yegor Ryshkan decided to rename the church in honor of his father, Constantine. Since that time, the temple began to bear its modern name - the Church of Saints Constantine and Helena. In the XIX century. the temple was considered the cemetery church of the village of Visternicheny.
The building of the church was made in the old Moldavian architectural style. On the left side of the central part, you can see a small semicircular extension. The top of the church is adorned with a square turret, over which a cross rises.
There was once a fairly large cemetery near the Cathedral of Constantine and Helena. Today, practically nothing remains of it. The gravestones of famous personalities were removed from the cemetery and reburied next to the temple building. A large number of gravestone stelae dating back to the 19th century have survived here, among which there are valuable examples of Moldavian stone-cutting craftsmanship. The family of Krupensky, Rally, Donich and Katsiki, with whom A. S. himself was closely acquainted, were buried in the cemetery. Pushkin.
During the Soviet years, the church was active. After the Moldovan Republic gained independence, a wooden iconostasis was installed in the church, the author of which was the famous artist and film director R. Vieru. A few years later, the Church of Constantine and Helena underwent reconstruction, as a result of which a new vestibule was built and the shape of the roof was changed.
Today, the Church of Constantine and Helena is a functioning temple, which is annually visited by a huge number of parishioners and tourists.
