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The construction of the Cathedral of the
Assumption was only the beginning of an unprecedented era of building and
embellishment of the Kremlin that was launched by Ivan III. a new Cathedral of
the Annunciation was
begun in 1484, to replace t he old one, built in 1397. Ivan gave the two Pskov
builders, Krivtsov and Mishkin another chance; this time they were indeed
successful. Instead of using semicircular "Zakomari" for the roof
superstructure, they introduced (for the first time in Moscow architecture),
corbeled arches arranged in receding tiers. The arches carry the drums and the
cupolas, and the entire superstructure had an impressive pyramidal silhouette.
The ogee-shaped arch became popular throughout Russia and found extensive use
in decorative art. It became known in Russia as "kokoshnik," a name
primarily given to a woman's headdress, which is very similar in form to the
kokoshnik that we often see in church architecture. Originally the cathedral
had only three cupolas and an open gallery with a parvis around its three
sides. A fire seriously damaged it in 1547. Under Ivan the Terrible it was
reconstructed in 1562-1564; the cathedral received two more cupolas on the
western side, the galleries were rebuilt and restored, and each corner was
turned into a chapel with a cupola on it, to commemorate the four main
Christian holidays. From the first days the cathedral served as a private
family chapel for the grand dukes and later the tsars. Many members of the
royal family were married or baptized in it. Without galleries, the cathedral
is indeed small, just the size of an average chapel. The four square pillars
that carry the superstructure are disproportionately large and take up quite a
lot of space, much reducing the view of the iconostasis. The cathedral is
connected to the palace through a special passage in its western side, leading
to the gallery. Ivan the Terrible often attended services there and legend says
that in 1584 he saw through the window a large comet which formed an enormous
cross. He became frightened and exclaimed: "This is the sign of my
death."
In 1508 Feodosii, son of the well-known iconographer Dionisii, helped by
several assistants, covered the entire cathedral with wall paintings. The
question of who painted the frescoes in the four chapels and the galleries that
were rebuilt in the time of Ivan the Terrible remains open. According to some
art historians they were painted by Feodosii; others argue that they were the
work of an unknown artist who painted them in 1547 after the fire. The main
frescoes depict several subjects from the Apocalypse, and also Byzantine
emperors and Russian princes, but together with saints on the walls of the
galleries we see the figures of Aristotle, Ptomomei, Anaharis, Menandre, Senon,
Plutarch and others. It is hard to accept that Feodosii or any other Russian
iconographer would venture to introduce Greek philosophers so boldly in to the
tsar's private chapel. Nevertheless, it did happen, and though the frescoes
were renovated and repainted several times, the Greeks remained on the walls.
This was an unusually liberal stand, taken by the Russian Church hierarchy.
Each time a service is held in an Orthodox church a great many candles are
lighted, while icon-lamps are supposed to burn continuously. The smoke they
produce in a century or two is sufficient to cover the icons and the frescoes
with soot and make them look dark. This is why at least cleaning if not
renovation was necessary. We know that the Cathedral of the Annunciation was
entirely renovated in 1697 and 1770, and its frescoes have since been renewed
in 1835 and 1882. An academic painter, V.D. Fartusov, was commissioned in 1882
to renew the frescoes in the parvis; his work soon stirred a controversy,
followed by his dismissal and the apparent total loss of the original frescoes,
and a mystery that may never be clarified. From the description that was
published in 1909 by A.I. Uspensky we learn that after cleaning the sealing of
the central cupola and the walls of the parvis, Fartusov found that they were
covered with fine frescos of exceptional beauty and mastership. He reported his
findings to the commission for protection of monuments. The members of the
commission went to the cathedral to examine the old frescoes and to the
astonishment of Fartusov and some other art students, reported to the president
of the commission that the "discovered frescoes did not at all resemble
the accepted type of old Russian church wall paintings, and accused the
restorer of altering them with his own drawings. Though Fartusov pleaded
innocent and maintained that it would be impossible for him to produce such
marvelous work, he was dismissed in 1885. However, before he left the cathedral
he made some fifty photos of the discovered frescoes, which clearly show that
only an experienced master familiar with western art, or else a foreigner,
could have painted them. There are several details that speak for this
conclusion, particularly the faces of the persons painted and the Roman noses
which are especially visible on the fresco"In Thee Rejoiceth." In the
absence of specific information, some critics tend to assume that these
particular frescoes were painted by a foreigner; there were many who came to
Moscow after Fioraventi. They base their assumption on the fact that the great
incendiary that ravaged Moscow and the Kremlin in 1547 also damaged the
Cathedral of the Annunciation, and they conclude that many frescoes painted by
Feodosiii perished at that time. Consequently, the frescoes that Fartusov
discovered were painted after 1547. In support of this they add that here is
clear indication that the impressive portals were built by an unknown Italian
at the time of the construction of the galleries and the chapels. To
"restore the damage" made by Fartusov, the commission picked Safonov,
an awkward restorer who had already mishandled other master-pieces, and
instructed him to replace the old with his own. He did it, fortunately, without
destroying the old. In 1947 former Palekh iconographers cleaned and restored
some of the frescoes. Additional work was done in 1961 and today we are assured
that the frescoes we see in the Cathedral of the Annunciation are those painted
by Feodosii and his assistants. Needless to say, this cathedral also had many
beautiful old icons, richly decorated with gold and precious tones; an
exceptional collection of crosses that once hung around the necks of princes,
grand dukes and tsars, including two gold crosses that allegedly belonged to
Vladimir Monomakh; several extraordinary chasubles, real masterpieces of gold,
silver and pearl embroidery, one of which had over forty pounds of pearls
alone; and many religious objects. Of interest also is the floor of the
cathedral, which was paved with slabs of jasper, agate and other colorful and
semi-precious stones sent by the Shah of Persia as a gift to Tsar Aleksei
Mikhailovich; and the beautiful crosses on the tip of each cupola in the form
of a fine wrought iron tracery. As another mark of his victory over the Tatars,
Ivan the Terrible ordered that a defeated crescent be put at the bottom of each
cross. They are still there. Under Vassilii III in 1508 not only the icons were
covered with silver and fold repousse plates, but all the cupolas and the
entire roof of the cathedral were gold plated. The work was done by the
well-known silversmith Fyodor Yedikeev and his assistants. In 1963 the Soviet
government ordered that the cupolas and the roof be regilded, so that now,
indeed, they shine perhaps too much.
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