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Moscow Orthodox Church Architecture

Type Object Region Europe Time 1555–1561

An Orthodox brick-and-stone church style that arose in the mid-16th-century Grand Principality of Moscow under Ivan IV, exemplified by Saint Basil's …

Timeline

  1. 1555–1556Red Square, Moscow · MoscowIvan IV commissioned a multi-domed brick-and-stone church on the southern edge of Red Square to commemorate the conquest of Kazan; according to tradition, architects Barma and Posadnik used a centralized plan with nine separate towers.
  2. 1556–1558Outskirts of the Moscow Kremlin · MoscowBetween 1556 and 1558, craftsmen translated brick drums, pendentives, and wooden tent-roof forms into brick-and-stone structures, with each tower topped differently, creating the iconic silhouette of the Moscow school of Orthodox architecture.
  3. 1559–1560Saint Basil's Cathedral · MoscowBy 1560 the exterior structure and colored glazed decoration were largely complete, with nine towers surrounding a central spire, making it the pinnacle example and ceremonial landmark of Moscow's mid-16th-century Orthodox brick-and-stone church architecture.

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