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RUSSIAN ART AND ARCHITECTURE
THROUGH THE CENTURIES

 
 

Pskov

 
 

Though some 120 miles south-west from Novgorod, the city of Pskov was considered until the middle of the 14th century as its "suburb" and was often called its "youngest brother. "This did not prevent Pskov's citizens from often showing an independent trend in various fields. Thus in architecture Pskov's builders made another step further away from Byzantine influence than was the case in Novgorod, and contributed several architectural innovations that helped with the emergence of Russian church style. In their earliest churches we see the walls made lower and more massive, as were the apses. They were built of very unevenly cut lime stone found on the nearby river banks, some times giving the impression that they were not built but were thrown together. Small in size, massive and plain, they appear more solidly attached to the ground than turned toward the sky. Most of their piers that carry the central cupola are round and as such different from the square piers of Novgorod's churches. The narrow windows and the absence of decorations on the walls confirm the continuity of ascetic tendencies in Pskov's ancient architecture. One of its best examples is the cathedral of the Transfiguration of the Savior in the Mirozhski monastery built in 1156 by the Archbishop of Novgorod Niphont. The monastery is located not far from the Kremlin, on the opposite side of the river Velikaya. Some of the frescoes of the cathedral were restored (or perhaps only cleaned). Their colors and their printing style show that Pskov remained more faithful to Byzantine manners than did Novgorod.

 
 

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