Cathedral of Saint Demetrius, Vladimir, Russia

The Cathedral of St Demetrius (1194-97) is a royal church, built to the order of Grand Prince Vsevolod III. It is cubic in form, with three internal naves and a helmet dome. The cathedral is one-domed and four-pillared. Originally it was surrounded by galleries with towers that connected it to the prince's palace. They were demolished during the restoration in the 19th century.

The church is famous for its white-stone carvings - its walls are decorated with ca. 600 reliefs, depicting saints, mythical and real animals. Most of the reliefs are preserved in their original form, some have been replaced during the restoration of the 19th century. Out of the internal decoration a few fragments of frescoes of the 12th century have survived, particularly fragments of the Last Judgement composition. Currently, the cathedral is a part of the Vladimir-Suzdal open-air museum.

References:

Wikipedia

User Reviews

Elena Kurilenko (2 years ago)
Must-visit in Vladimir.

Francesco Fantoni (2 years ago)
Patrimonio Unesco, la Cattedrale è posizionata su un'altura, nel pieno centro di Vladimir, e dalla quale con uno sguardo si domina tutta la vallata circostante. Costruita in pietra bianca, è tipica architettura russa, molto scenografica. L'interno funge da museo che è possibile visitare pagando un modesto biglietto.

Archaic Lier (3 years ago)
A beautiful Cathedral that can capture the imagination

Suzanne Bell (3 years ago)
A very beautiful church with intricate carvings

Daniel Kiselev (4 years ago)
A beautiful church, one of the oldest in Russia. At the moment it works primarily as a museum, however, from time to time religious services are carried out here. The view from the rear of the building is tremendous. Nearby there's a park with a large playground and some other commodities, such as electroscooter rent or ice cream shops.

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Angelokastro is a Byzantine castle on the island of Corfu. It is located at the top of the highest peak of the island"s shoreline in the northwest coast near Palaiokastritsa and built on particularly precipitous and rocky terrain. It stands 305 m on a steep cliff above the sea and surveys the City of Corfu and the mountains of mainland Greece to the southeast and a wide area of Corfu toward the northeast and northwest.

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Angelokastro formed a defensive triangle with the castles of Gardiki and Kassiopi, which covered Corfu"s defences to the south, northwest and northeast.

The castle never fell, despite frequent sieges and attempts at conquering it through the centuries, and played a decisive role in defending the island against pirate incursions and during three sieges of Corfu by the Ottomans, significantly contributing to their defeat.

During invasions it helped shelter the local peasant population. The villagers also fought against the invaders playing an active role in the defence of the castle.

The exact period of the building of the castle is not known, but it has often been attributed to the reigns of Michael I Komnenos and his son Michael II Komnenos. The first documentary evidence for the fortress dates to 1272, when Giordano di San Felice took possession of it for Charles of Anjou, who had seized Corfu from Manfred, King of Sicily in 1267.

From 1387 to the end of the 16th century, Angelokastro was the official capital of Corfu and the seat of the Provveditore Generale del Levante, governor of the Ionian islands and commander of the Venetian fleet, which was stationed in Corfu.

The governor of the castle (the castellan) was normally appointed by the City council of Corfu and was chosen amongst the noblemen of the island.

Angelokastro is considered one of the most imposing architectural remains in the Ionian Islands.

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