The artist Vladimir Treshchev has devoted several of his works to the outskirts of the village of Lyavlya, on the bank of the river of the same name, a tributary of the Northern Dvina. This village is first mentioned in the chronicles of the 14th century. At that time, it was one of the first Novgorod settlements on the banks of the Northern Dvina.
In the picture, the artist depicted the main attraction of Lyavlya — the wooden church of St. Nicholas, which was built in the 1580s. There are only three churches of this kind with an octagonal base and a tented roof instead of a dome in the Arkhangelsk region, and this one is the oldest of them. It used to be a part of the Monastery of the Theotokos in Lyavlya, but in the 17th century, the monastery was closed.
After the church reform of 1654, Patriarch Nikon forbade the construction of cathedrals with tented roofs. They were to be replaced by structures with five domes. In spite of this, the villages of the Russian North continued to build churches according to the old model. Money for them was usually raised by the villagers themselves. There were almost no inspections from the highest Orthodox authorities in these areas, so there were no punishments for violating Nikon’s decrees.
The painting by Vladimir Treshchev depicts the Church of St. Nicholas in the distance, against a dark blue stormy sky. The hill, on which it stands, is surrounded by trees with yellowish leaves. In the foreground, you can see a field, where the grass has dried up but is still green on the hill.
The Church of St. Nicholas is now a part of the open-air museum of wooden architecture called “Malye Korely”. Over the centuries, it has lost some of its decorations. The foundation sagged into the ground. However, renovators constantly monitor its condition and restore the structure as needed.
In the picture, the artist depicted the main attraction of Lyavlya — the wooden church of St. Nicholas, which was built in the 1580s. There are only three churches of this kind with an octagonal base and a tented roof instead of a dome in the Arkhangelsk region, and this one is the oldest of them. It used to be a part of the Monastery of the Theotokos in Lyavlya, but in the 17th century, the monastery was closed.
After the church reform of 1654, Patriarch Nikon forbade the construction of cathedrals with tented roofs. They were to be replaced by structures with five domes. In spite of this, the villages of the Russian North continued to build churches according to the old model. Money for them was usually raised by the villagers themselves. There were almost no inspections from the highest Orthodox authorities in these areas, so there were no punishments for violating Nikon’s decrees.
The painting by Vladimir Treshchev depicts the Church of St. Nicholas in the distance, against a dark blue stormy sky. The hill, on which it stands, is surrounded by trees with yellowish leaves. In the foreground, you can see a field, where the grass has dried up but is still green on the hill.
The Church of St. Nicholas is now a part of the open-air museum of wooden architecture called “Malye Korely”. Over the centuries, it has lost some of its decorations. The foundation sagged into the ground. However, renovators constantly monitor its condition and restore the structure as needed.
