The Assumption Cathedral (Cathedral of the Dormition) is the oldest and largest church in Cathedral Square-Uspenski Sobor or the Cathedral of the Assumption was commissioned by Ivan the Great to be the main church of Moscow. From the 16th Century until the Bolshevik Revolution in 1917, all of the Russian Grand Princes and Czars were crowned here. The massive, virtually unadorned grey limestone facade, capped with its 5 golden cupolas was the work of Russian masters, under the guidance of the Italian Aristotle Fioravante. Inside, well over 100 figures of saints and martyrs adorn the pillars, window jams, and reinforcing arches. The floor to ceiling partition, that divides the sanctuary from the naive consists of tier after tier of icons.
©2003 Graham Armstrong