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Above the northern double-arched gate of the
once-famous monastery and later Moscow residence of the archbishops of
"Saray and Podonsk," the Krutitiskii Teremok, the summer home of by
then Krutitiskii Metropolitan Iona was built in 1681-1684. Overwhelmed with its
beauty, the Metropolitan wanted to make of his new homestead a sort of a
paradise on earth. He commissioned the same Osip Startsev to build and decorate
the Teremok; he covered entirely its walls with beautiful varicolored glazed
tiles. Particularly attractive and rich are the window colonnades with their
winding garlands of grape vines executed in soft green and yellow colors, an
ornament greatly favored in Russia and often found in church portals,
colonnades, iconostases etc. The ceramics of the Krutitskii Teremok were among
the best that Russian tile-makers had produced.
At the end of the 17th and the beginning of the 18th centuries the
ornamentation of churches was characterized by its opulence. Ceramics and stone
carving competed with traditional wood carving. Garlands of weighty grapes with
luxuriant leaves, clusters of other berries, pomegranates and other fruits, and
also flowers with tulips were the favorite motifs.
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