RUSSIAN FEDERATION NOMINATION THE ASSUMPTION CATHEDRAL OF THE TOWN-ISLAND OF SVIYAZHSK FOR INSCRIPTION ON THE WORLD HERITAGE LIST 2016 RUSSIAN FEDERATION NOMINATION THE ASSUMPTION CATHEDRAL OF THE TOWN-ISLAND OF SVIYAZHSK FOR INSCRIPTION ON THE WORLD HERITAGE LIST 2016 Russian Federation, Republic of Tatarstan 2 NOMINATION “THE ASSUMPTION CATHEDRAL OF THE TOWN-ISLAND OF SVIYAZHSK” NOMINATION FORM e Convention State party Russian Federation State, province or region Republic of Tatarstan, Zelenodolsk municipal region, the settlement of Sviyazhsk e name of the property e Assumption Cathedral of the town-island of Sviyazhsk Geographic coordinates to the nearest second Latitude 45º06’05” Longitude 15º37’56” e text description of the nominated property boundaries e boundaries of the nominated property 12th points in the fold of the Gateway church go along the perimeter of the walls of the along the Uspenskaya Street, from 12th to 14th Assumption Cathedral within its boundaries points on the south –west along the façade of of the XIX century.: from point 1 to point 4 the Archimandrite building to its south-west in the north along the monastery wall, from corner, from 14th to 16th points on the south point 4 to point 5 on the north-east along the corner of the Monastery school, from point17 boundaries of the cadaster household land plot on the west – the north-west corner of the along the Monastery lane to the Uspenskaya Monastery school building, on the west – from Street, from point 5 to point 9 on the south-east point 18 to point 24 – the north west corner along the Uspenskaya Street till the Gateway of the Assumption monastery on the north church and the Ascension church, from 9th to directly to poin – 25 -1. 3 Russian Federation, Republic of Tatarstan e map of the nominated territory with boundaries of the property and the bu er zone Annex. Section 1.2, 1.3, 1.4, 1.4 A Criteria under which it is proposed to inscribe the property into the World Heritage List ii, iv e map of the nominated territory and bu er zone E E E E E E E E E E E E E N N N N N N N N N N N N N N N N N N N N N N N N N N N N N ha N ha N 11,563.9 ha N E E E E E E E E E E E E E 4 NOMINATION “THE ASSUMPTION CATHEDRAL OF THE TOWN-ISLAND OF SVIYAZHSK” DRAFT STATEMENT OF OUTSTANDING UNIVERSAL VALUE a) Brief synthesis he Assumption Cathedral is located at ness and an example of a special trend of Tthe conuence of the Volga, the Sviyaga development of Christian art of Russian and and the Shchuka rivers, in the town-island Europe. of Sviyazhsk in 30 kilometers away from Ka- e frescos are unique as they are the zan – the capital of the Republic of Tatarstan. graphic reection of the Stoglav Council of It is a part of the Assumption Monastery 1551, of councils 1553-1555, which is histor- which consists of seven stone constructions ically important not only for Russia but for built in dierent time during the XVI-XIX the whole of the Eastern Orthodox Church centuries. It is surrounded by a wall which and history of icon painting. e unique gives it the appearance of a real white-stone choice of saint warriors and preference of Kremlin and has some loopholes and mer- certain iconographic versions are related lons. It was established by the metropolitan with the broad enlightening character of Makarius in 1555 by the decree of Ivan the the cathedral painting program and testies Terrible and headed by the archimandrite the contacts with the Orthodox East, where German who had Tatar origins. these saints were especially worshipped. Construction of the cathedral was carried e Assumption Cathedral is an excep- from 1556 till 1560 out by Pskov builders tional evidence of historical succession and under the supervision of the architect Post- cultural diversity. e property not only nik Yakovlev. Novelties characteristic of the possesses brightly expressed esthetic pecu- state architecture of the Moscow tsardom liarities, but also illustrates the new stage of and local traditions formed in the boundar- development of Russian culture, the trend of ies of the Volga Bolgaria, the Golden Horde Russian art which embodied achievements and the Kazan Khanate were introduced of the Byzantine classical heritage, the Greek into the Pskov monumental architectural Orthodox art, Novgorod and Moscow tradition. In the XVIII century the cathedral schools of monumental painting and archi- appearance was supplemented by decora- tecture, the inuence of the West European tions in Baroque style, which harmonized Christian tradition and methods and princi- with its Old Russian style. ples of European art. e complete cycle of the frescos from the At the same time one should take into second half of the XVI – early XVII centu- consideration the location and geo-polit- ries with the total area of 1,080 sq. m. has ical conditions of the Assumption Cathe- survived in the cathedral interior as well as dral emergence in an alien Turki-Tatar and the iconostasis with the icons of the XVI- Finnish-Ugric environment. So the idea of XVII centuries and the only portrait of Ivan the cathedral is the unique evidence of in- the Terrible. e frescos and architectural teraction of the Christian-Orthodox and ensemble is the reection of a new trend Muslim cultures. On the one hand, the idea in Russian art and a remarkable reection of the cathedral is developed in architec- of the ambitious cultural and civilizational tural, picturesque and spiritual images of ideology initiated by the Russian state in the the topic of the Assumption of the Virgin, XVI-XVII centuries. e ideological pro- especially worshipped in Russia, and the gram, hierarchy, monumentality, superb ar- cycle of scenes in paintings of the Assump- tistic skills of performance and style of wall tion Cathedral for the rst time appeared in paintings are characteristic traits of unique- historical context as a link between the Old 5 Russian Federation, Republic of Tatarstan and New Testaments narration. Placing il- e Assumption Cathedral is real evi- lustrations of “e Genesis” on the vaults of dence of cardinal historical and geo-political the cathedral interior as the main topic of changes in Eurasia which played a key role paintings was an absolutely new phenome- in the formation of the multinational Rus- non, which did not have visual traditions in sian state and radically inuenced the his- Russia. On the other hand, the Assumption torical destiny of peoples in the Volga-Ural cathedral, which has the image of the Vir- region, in Siberia and Central Asia, as well as gin as the main idea of its construction, is in spreading Russian Orthodoxy to the east an outstanding evidence of connection with and the disappearance of the post-Golden the Muslim tradition of worshipping Mari- Horde Islamic states – Kazan, Astrakhan, am ana (Mary). e location of the cathedral Siberian, Nogay, and Crimean khanates. is simultaneously the north-west point of Is- A unique synthesis of the cultures of the lam spreading and the south-east spreading West and East, dierent architectural and point of the architectural and artistic style of artistic styles as well as mutual inuence of Pskov, Novgorod and Moscow. values and enrichment of cultures have been e Assumption Cathedral is an out- brightly manifested in the Assumption Ca- standing evidence of the strategic develop- thedral. Its architectural history, wall and ment of Sviyazhsk as an outpost for suc- icon painting are unique attributes char- cessful conquering of the Kazan Khanate by acterizing historical, cultural, spiritual and Ivan the Terrible and for the following am- religious life, demonstration of feelings of bitious program of expanding lands, which believers in dierent epochs, the succession was initiated by Moscow ruling circles in the of religious life as well as the development middle of the XVI century for strengthening of architectural and artistic thought and its relations between the Christian Orthodoxy material embodiment. e evolution of the and the imperial expansion. e Assump- cathedral and the town island of Sviyazhsk tion Cathedral had an ocially approved from the object of confrontation and war mission of spreading Christianity in the re- into the island of peace, cultural diversity, gion. Fullling it, both the cathedral and the poly-ethnicity and poly-culture and revival monastery together with Kazan became the of spirituality has become the most import- important centres of Christian culture in the ant symbolic characteristic. Islamic and pagan enclave in the middle of the XVI century. B) Justification for Criteria Criterion II he Assumption Cathedral is a remarkable period of time. Active synthesis of cultural Texample of spiritual and cultural space, Christian and Muslim traditions, substantial with the ultimate concentration of diversi- mutual inuence of human values and mutu- ty of original cultures and civilizations. It is al enrichment of cultures were taking place a unique evidence of common historical, during the process of erection and evolution ethnic, cultural, spiritual and confessional (development) of the Assumption Cathedral. evolution of peoples of Eurasia over a long 6 NOMINATION “THE ASSUMPTION CATHEDRAL OF THE TOWN-ISLAND OF SVIYAZHSK” Criterion IV he Assumption Cathedral in the town events of the second half of the XVI – begin- Tisland of Sviyazhsk is a unique sample ning of the XVII centuries and cultural life of historical, cultural and artistic complex. of the epoch and occupy one of the most im- It appeared as a result of architectural tradi- portant places in the history of Christian art tions synthesis of North and Central Russia of that time.