At the intersection of Maroseyka with Starosadsky Lane, after which it turns into Pokrovka, there is remarkable temple. It seems as if it consists of several “Easter cakes” adjacent to each other. You can feel the hand of a good architect - and indeed, one of the the best masters of your business.
The first mention of the church is associated with a sad event: it completely burned down in 1547. Then the church disappears for a long time from historical sources and appears again in 1629 - and again in connection with a devastating fire. In 1639 it was built in stone. However, in the 18th century, this building also fell into disrepair and was in danger of collapse. One of the best architects of his era, M.F. Kazakov, was invited to rebuild it. Construction proceeded slowly, stopping several times and ultimately lasting from 1791 to 1803. The funds for its completion were provided by Lieutenant Colonel M.R. Khlebnikov, who lived opposite.
Although the temple is named after Saints Cosmas and Damian, only one of the side chapels is actually dedicated to them. The second aisle is Nikolsky. And the central altar was consecrated in honor of the icon of Christ the Savior, who healed the paralytic - the only case in Moscow. The architecture of the temple is classified as “mature classicism,” which is characterized by laconicism and restraint in design. The church attracts attention not so much with the decoration of the facades, on which there are no stucco moldings or paintings, but with its overall structure. The altar apse and the aisles are equal in height and thereby create a harmonious ensemble consisting of a combination of four cylinders adjacent to each other (the main part, the altar and two aisles) and a cubic refectory with a bell tower. In the main part and in the refectory, two-column porticoes are located at an equal distance from the side chapels. There is a little more decor in the upper part of the church: the dome of the central volume is cut through by lucarne windows, and it itself is topped with a main drum with pilasters.
Among the parishioners of the temple were famous Russian writers: F.I. Tyutchev,. After the revolution, the temple was closed and at the end of the 1920s, under the pretext of expanding the street, it was scheduled for demolition, which was preceded by a complete photographic recording of the building and taking measurements. However, the decision to destroy the church was not implemented. Instead, a warehouse and a beer hall were installed in it, then their place was taken by a car model workshop, then by a club of automoto-tourists. During the adaptation process, the interior decoration of the temple was almost completely lost, but externally it remained virtually unchanged and was not radically rebuilt. Since 1993, worship services have resumed here; during the years of restoration they were dismantled interfloor ceilings, lost interior details and iconostases were recreated.
The first church stood here a long time ago - it is known that it burned in the fire of the year, it was rebuilt, but the second building also burned down in the same year. The church was rebuilt, and this time in stone.
This temple is mentioned in the book of the Patriarchal Treasury Order for the year and in the “Book of the Tsar’s Salary to Moscow Churches.” The church was stone, one-story and two-altar: with a main altar in the name of St. Nicholas and a side altar in the name of Sts. unmercenaries Cosmas and Damian. Therefore, in ancient documents it was often called the Church of St. Nicholas, although the name for the Kosmodamian chapel was also retained.
Initially, the temple had neither a porch nor a bell tower; they were added only in the year. At the end of the 17th century, under the care of Princess Evdokia Andreevna Kurakina, a second upper tier grew over the one-story building, and a new church was built here in the name of the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God. So the old Kosmodamiansky temple acquired a third name - Kazan. At first, the church was only owned by Princess Kurakina, and the special priest and psalm-reader from Kosmodamiansky were maintained at the expense of the princess. But in 1771-1772. The temple came under the control of the Kosmodamian clergy and merged with the parish.
The name of the new church along the side-altar Kosmodamiansky still remained, although after the main altar it was sometimes called Spassky. Almost all parishioners made more or less significant donations for the construction of the temple.
The project by the famous Russian architect Matvey Kazakov combines individual parts and lines with remarkable skill. The structure of the temple aisles is original: the northern Kosmodamiansky and the southern Nikolsky. These chapels are placed in a space that has a strictly consistent circular shape. The church and partly its altar also have the appearance of a circle.
During the invasion of Moscow by enemies in the year, the Cosmodamian Church suffered a common fate with other churches, losing a significant part of its property and decorations.
Until a year, the temple was divided into 2 halves: winter and summer. The “cold” temple in the name of the Savior, the Healer of the paralytic, was locked winter time, the “warm” one consisted only of a refectory and two side-chapels and was not distinguished by its spaciousness. In winter it was especially crowded here, and in 1857 an oven was built in the basement under the church. So the cold church became warm. Since then, almost 40 years of major capital works was not carried out in the Cosmodamian Church.
In the year the temple was renovated inside and out.
In the early 1930s, the parish was dispersed, the icons and decorations of the church were confiscated, and they disappeared without a trace. A decree to blow up the temple had already been signed, but this did not happen. Subsequently, the building was used as an industrial warehouse, a motorcycle club, an archive, and art classes.
Three were demolished in the 1960s church houses, and in their place a huge administrative building was built, to which the temple was transferred for the archive. In those same years, a partial restoration of the church was carried out - after external repairs, the external decoration of the temple was restored, gilded crosses were erected. However, the interior was disfigured by floor coverings and many partitions. Due to numerous redevelopments, the floor had a strong slope.
On June 22 of the year, the Moscow Government issued a decree on the transfer of the building of the Cosmodamian Church to the Russian Orthodox Church. Began renovation work, prayer singing to the Savior and Saints Cosmas and Damian was resumed. On November 14, 1993, on the day of remembrance of the holy unmercenaries and wonderworkers Cosmas and Damian, the first Liturgy took place in the right aisle. Some time later, worship was restored in the central altar.
Abbots
- Feodor Borodin (since October 14, 1993)
Used materials
- A brief history of the temple on the official website of the parish
- Temple of the unmercenary saints Cosmas and Damian on Maroseyka // Radio "Vera"
The church on Maroseyka is located between a modern high-rise with glass facade on one side and a busy highway on the other. It seems as if it was accidentally “placed” in the center of a noisy and dusty metropolis. Although it was Moscow that grew up around it over four centuries.
History of the monastery
The modern building of the Cosmodamian Church in Moscow is not the first on this site. At first there was a wooden church here, which burned down twice: in 1547 and 1629. After the second fire, the temple was built from stone.
Temple of the unmercenary Cosmas and Damian on Maroseyka
The main altar of the stone church was dedicated to St. Nicholas the Wonderworker, which is why it was often called Nikolaevskaya. A chapel was dedicated to the Holy Unmercenaries Cosmas and Damian. Over time, a porch was added, a bell tower was erected, and then a second floor. They built another church there and dedicated it to the Kazan Icon Mother of God.
By the end of the 18th century, the building had almost completely dilapidated, and the parishioners decided to build a new one. In July 1790, construction began on a temple on this site, in which:
- the main chapel in honor of the Savior’s healing of the paralytic;
- the southern aisle was consecrated in the name of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker;
- northern aisle - Saints Unmercenary Cosmas and Damian.
The Kosmodamian chapel remained the only one unchanged, which is why the name of the church stuck among the people.
Until the mid-19th century, the temple consisted of two parts. The unheated main aisle was closed for the winter. In the warm part, which included only the chapels and the refectory, there was little space. Thanks to the installation of a furnace in the basement, the entire space began to be used in winter.
In the 1930s, the temple was under threat of destruction: a decree on explosive work was signed, but not implemented. In Soviet times, the church premises housed a warehouse, an archive, and drawing classes.
The transfer of the building to the archive coincided with the destruction of three buildings on its territory and partial restoration external decoration. Even the crosses were reinstalled. A series of ceilings appeared inside. All this happened in the 1960s.
Temple icon of Saints Cosmas and Damian
Russian Orthodox Church returned the temple of Cosmas and Damian on Maroseyka in 1993. The first Liturgy after the restoration was served on the patronal feast of Cosmas and Damian on November 14 of the same year.
Temple today
Today, services in the Church of Cosmas and Damian on Maroseyka are held regularly:
In days Orthodox holidays Regardless of the day of the week, the Liturgy begins at 9:00, and at 17:00 the night before they serve the all-night vigil.
On a note! You can confess in the Kosmodamian Church in the morning on any day when the Liturgy is served.
Since the restoration of church life in the Church of the Holy Unmercenaries Cosmas and Damian in Moscow, Archpriest Fyodor Borodin has remained its permanent rector.
Parish life
The life of the community is built around several areas of service. They work here:
- historical and cultural educational center that conducts film lectures, open meetings and lectures, musical evenings;
- catechetical groups “Discovery of Faith” for those who are preparing to be baptized themselves or become godparents;
- Gospel readings;
- social service;
- Sunday School.
The youngest pupils of the Sunday school at the Church of Cosmas and Damian are about one and a half years old. They do modeling, drawing, dance and play. For the little ones, Sunday service consists of common prayer. With the onset of summer, older students do not leave church life, but go on a kayaking trip when they arrive.
Shrines
In the Temple of Cosmas and Damian in Moscow you can worship:
- the icon of the Savior who healed the paralytic;
- relics and icon of Saints Unmercenary Cosmas and Damian;
- relics of the holy martyr. Bonifatia;
- relics of St. Luka Krymsky (Voino-Yasenetsky).
Patronal holidays
The Church of Cosmas and Damian in Moscow has three altars, which is why the church has many holidays.
- The main temple celebration takes place on the Sunday of the Paralytic in memory of the Savior’s healing of the paralytic at the Sheep Font.
The week of the paralytic is celebrated annually in different days, but only on the fourth Sunday after Easter. In 2018, this day fell on April 29; Orthodox Christians celebrated Easter on April 8.
Patronal feast day in the Church of the Holy Unmercenaries and Wonderworkers Cosmas and Damian on Maroseyka
- On November 14, the memory of the holy Unmercenaries and wonderworkers Cosmas and Damian of Assia is celebrated.
- Several times a year the Church remembers St. Nicholas, Archbishop of Myra, wonderworker.
How to get there
The Temple of Cosmas and Damian is located at the intersection of Maroseyka Street and Starosadsky Lane at the address: st. Maroseyka, 14/2, building 3.
“The first church stood on Maroseyka for a long time - it burned in the fire of 1547, and in 1629 the newly rebuilt wooden church also burned down. The current building was built in 1791-1803 by the architect Matvey Kazakov, commissioned by A.F. Khlebnikova and her husband, Colonel M.R. Khlebnikov. They owned a luxurious bright blue palace with stucco (house no. 17) on Maroseyka, directly opposite the church, which Vasily Bazhenov himself built for them, where Field Marshal P.A. Rumyantsev later lived, and is now located Embassy of Belarus. It’s interesting this: in the church built by Kazakov at the request of the rich and noble Khlebnikovs, the chapel was consecrated in honor of Cosmas and Damian - holy unmercenary doctors who treated for free throughout their long lives, and the main altar, so rare for Moscow churches - in honor Christ the Savior, who healed the paralytic. This icon of the Savior, who healed the paralytic, became famous in Dmitrovsky district, where in 1780 a stone church was built in its honor - just shortly before the construction of the same name in Moscow. Judging by this, the temple was built by the customers as a vow or in gratitude for the healing of one of the members of this family, or in a request for help in illness. The medical theme with the plot of healing is the main one in the temple on Maroseyka. It’s probably worth noting that the inscription “free from standing” on the gates of the former Khlebnikov house has nothing to do with them. Only in the 1840s this house was acquired by the merchants Grachevs, who paid a fee for the construction of barracks in Moscow. For this they were exempted from the mandatory maintenance and stationing of soldiers. At the end of the 1920s, it was decided to demolish the fence and corner of the church to expand car traffic along Maroseyka, which became Bohdan Khmelnitsky Street in Soviet times. Then the church was closed, the fence was dismantled, a warehouse was set up in the “vacated” building, and a pub was built in the courtyard-square, which was broken down in the 50s. last century. Only in 1972 the fence was restored to the same type as the one destroyed. Now the church is active." © http://www.pravoslavie.ru/
Then we crossed Maroseyka and ended up in Armenian Lane. Since there are embassies all around (Belarusian on one side, Armenian on the other), we didn’t take much photographs, so as not to irritate the embassy guards. But we still snatched a piece of a ruined building adjacent to the building of the Armenian Embassy that is being restored.
The Armenian Lane received its final name in the 18th century, in connection with the Armenian settlement located here. Before that, it was Nikolsky, Stolpovsky (from the name of the Church of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker near the Pillar), Artamonovsky. On it are located the estates of the Miloslavskys (no. 3) and Tyutchevs (no. 11), the Lazarevs' house (currently the Armenian Embassy, no. 2).
In historical chronicles 1718-1725. There are no courtyards along Armenian Lane; one must assume that the lane was not yet paved at that time.
In the middle of the 18th century. The rich and noble Armenian L.N. Lazarev moved to Russia from Persia for permanent residence with a large family, relatives and servants. In Moscow, he bought up many yards between Myasnitskaya (Kirova Street) and Maroseyka (Bogdan Khmelnitsky Street), especially in the lane we are describing, where in 1781 -1782. financed by the Lazarevs was built in the courtyard of house No. 3
large Armenian church. Catherine II elevated the entire Lazarev family to the rank of nobility, and, like Russian landowners, they bought several villages, where they mostly set up silk and paper factories. The largest of the silk factories was in Fryanovo, Moscow province, Bogorodsky district. Brocades and silks were made here that were not inferior to those produced abroad. I. L. Lazarev made a particularly large fortune. He died (in 1801) childless and transferred most of his wealth to his brother Iakim, bequeathing him to build a school for the children of the poorest Armenians. The latter fulfilled the will of the testator and in 1815 opened such a school in his house (No. 2), at the same time starting to build a new one for it big house and (in 1817-1823) outbuildings that still stand here. In 1835 the school received the rights of a gymnasium, and in 1848 it was transformed into a higher school educational institution- Lazarevsky Institute
oriental languages. The institute occupied almost the entire space along Armenian Lane from Krivokolenny to Maly Zlatoustovsky; there was a large garden at the institute. The Institute has done a lot to train Russian leaders in Eastern countries. An engraving from the first quarter of the 19th century has been preserved, depicting Armenian Lane near Krivokolenny. On both sides of the alley there are one-story houses; its roadway is paved with cobblestones. The architectural decoration of the alley are the buildings of the institute and the Armenian church. The Institute is one of the architectural landmarks of Moscow. Its building, raised by a high plinth, is spectacularly placed in the depths of the front courtyard, bordered on the side
the lane is surrounded by a beautiful fence with a monumental gate. A magnificent portico expressively forms the center of the building. The main building and harmoniously combined with
The side wings form a beautifully designed ensemble. Next to the Armenian Church, on the spot modern houses No. 5 and 7 and the courtyard of boyar Matveev (No. 9), was located at the end of the 18th century. the vast courtyard of Prince S.V. Meshchersky. The plan of this courtyard from 1777 has been preserved, showing us its development. In the depths of the courtyard there were large stone chambers in which the boyar A.S. Matveev lived (they were demolished in 1783). Adjoining the chambers from the southeast was a small stone house church of the Trinity “with a dome and a bell.” To the north of the chambers there were further stone buildings, and to the east there was an extensive garden with a pond. Along Armenian Lane, near the front gate, there were small stone buildings on stone pillars.
That year, Prince Meshchersky broke old wooden buildings, located north of his front yard, and created here new house with a special gate to Armenian Lane and wooden buildings along the red line of this lane. In the courtyard, on the sides of the gate, with the ends facing the alley, wooden human quarters were built, and opposite the gate - a wooden semicircle of stables, in the center of which there was a passage to backyard. To the south of the front courtyard of Prince Meshchersky, capturing part of Sverchkov Lane, between Devyatkin and Armenian, there was a long but narrow courtyard of Colonel Dashkov, with a small stone building in the middle and wooden ones along both lanes. Behind it stood the courtyard of Colonel Dubrovsky, with a dilapidated stone building on Armenian Lane. Finally, at the corner with Pokrovka there was an extensive courtyard of General's wife Khitrova, with stone chambers along the red line of the Armenian
lane, which, however, did not reach Pokrovka. On the opposite corner of Armenian Lane and Maroseyka in 1774-1793. there was an extensive courtyard of Colonel Khlebnikov, formed from four properties he bought: the daughter of the provincial prosecutor Ladyzhenskaya - on the corner, the merchant Pastukhov - next to the alley, the daughter of second lieutenant Dobrovolskaya - further
behind him and the priest of the church of Cosmas and Damian - Timofeev. At the very corner with Maroseyka, Khlebnikov built a large stone house three floors, and from it along the alley there was a vast garden. It is believed that this house was built by the architect V.I. Bazhenov. Street facade of a house in the 19th century. underwent great changes, but from the side of the court the appearance of the end of the 18th century was preserved to a certain extent. In 1793, this house was bought by the famous commander, Field Marshal Count P. A. Rumyantsev-Zadunaisky. At the count's request, the inside of the house was painted with pictures of the battles in which he participated. After his death, the house, in 1796-1827, belonged to his son - Count N.P. Rumyantsev, the founder
Rumyantsev Library and Museum, and in 1827-1835 to his other son, Count S.P. Rumyantsev. Behind the garden of this house stood the Church of St. Nicholas in the Pillars with a fence; Opposite her, on the other corner of Maly Zlatoustovsky and Armenian lanes, are the small courtyards of her clergy with wooden buildings. They were surrounded, opening into both lanes, by a large courtyard with the garden of the Armenian Lazarev. Next was his own extensive yard, and only at the very corner with Krivokolenny Lane was the yard of the poet F.I. Tyutchev’s father, and opposite was the yard of Count E.V. Santi. The main house of the Tyutchevs was house number 11. In this house F.I. Tyutchev spent his childhood and teenage years. In 1817, V. A. Zhukovsky visited the Tyutchevs here. In 1825, the Decembrists lived in the same house: member Northern Society D. I. Zavalishin, member of the “Union of Welfare” A. V. Sheremetev. On January 9, 1826, the Decembrist I. D. Yakushkin was arrested here at Sheremetev’s apartment. After the fire of 1812, in which many wooden buildings burned down, stone ones appeared in their place along the alley, and both stone and wooden ones appeared in the courtyards. In 1813-1819. The Moscow City Building Commission continued the current Sverchkov Lane from Devyatkina Lane to Armenian Lane. In the 19th century Armenian Lane has significantly changed its appearance and development. On the corner of Maroseyka Street, the former Rumyantsev house passed first into the hands of the wife of General Divov (1835-1839), then the schismatic merchant Shcheglov (1840-1843), the merchants Usachev (1844-1857), Sapozhnikov (1858-1864 gg.), Kaulina
(1864-1876) and, finally, the Grachevs, who owned it from 1877 to 1918. What these owners did with the house is told by the famous “grandmother” E. Yankova: “...Rumyantsevsky house on Pokrovka... there in many rooms there were painted and bas-relief images of battles in which Zadunaysky participated. Then this house was bought by some merchant (Shcheglov, in 1840) and,
of course, scraped and cleaned these glorious memories. In 1864-1876. another merchant, Kaulin, destroyed the extensive beautiful garden, and the Grachevs (the next owners.) adapted the entire house into apartments and retail premises. However, even to this day, despite the many alterations and special devices, the main building of this house appears in many of its parts as a majestic, grandiose structure.” In the second half of the 19th century. on the site of the garden, a three-story stone building was erected with apartments-rooms along long corridors, for rent, which was built on during Soviet times. In the 1870s, the main house housed the administration of Libavo-Romenskaya railway, then for four years one of the prominent railway figures, V.K. Von-Meck (builder of the Kazan Railway), lived here. In 1888, half of the mezzanine housed the City Auction Chamber, where houses and estates of the most famous nobles and statesmen of the late 18th century were sold daily under the hammer. early XIX V. During Soviet times, the artist V.K. Kolenda, who was the author of a number of interesting works depicting the architectural monuments of Moscow, lived and died in this house.
The house on the lane opposite in the first half of the 19th century. was turned by its owner Gorikhvostov into an almshouse for widows and orphans of clergy. One might think that it was joined by what was at the Church of St. Nicholas in the Pillars in the 18th century. almshouse for the poor. The vast chambers of Miloslavsky were used for the almshouse; This building survived until Soviet times.
At the end of the 19th - beginning of the 20th centuries. In place of one-story buildings along Armenian Lane, three- and four-story houses were erected (No. 1, 3, 5, 7, etc.), the lane was paved with cobblestones and illuminated with gas lamps. But only after the Great October Socialist Revolution did real city life begin here. St. Nicholas Church in Stolpi and the Armenian Church were demolished; a large school appeared on the site of the first one. For some time, the main building of the Lazarev Institute housed the House of Culture of Armenia (and now the embassy). In 1905, the Lazarevsky Institute had a revolutionary weapons warehouse, which was discovered only in November 1906, during a search after the assassination attempt on the Moscow mayor Reinboth. © Sytin P.V., Moscow Worker Publishing House, 1958; Portal "Archaeology of Russia", 2004
