Valdai Iversky Holy Lake Monastery. Valdai Iversky Bogoroditsky Svyatoozersky Orthodox Monastery: pages of history Valdai Monastery
Iversky Bogoroditsky Svyatoozersky Monastery - a copy of the Iveri monastery on Mount Athos
The Iversky Bogoroditsky Svyatoozersky Monastery was created under Metropolitan Nikon back in 1652. The monastery is located on one of the islands on Lake Valdai.
The Valdai Monastery was the first among the grandiose buildings carried out by the patriarch. The Iversky Monastery on Lake Valdai is essentially a kind of copy of the Athos monastery of Iveri, which was revered as the main monastery on the Holy Mountain. And this was precisely the special strategy of Patriarch Nikon’s policy; he sought to maximally expand the boundaries of the Orthodox Church of Rus', endowing grandiose buildings with loud names: New Jerusalem, Monastery of the Cross.
The Assumption Cathedral in the Iversky Monastery was built by the whole world, in the literal sense of the word: for example, a blacksmith arrived from Torzhok, brick makers and kilns were supplied by Moscow, the famous Ignat Maksimov, a master of magnificent colored tiles, came from Kopys in Belarus, his works subsequently became famous far beyond Valdai.
The Belarusian monks brought all their property and even a printing house to Valdai - a great value and an extraordinary rarity in Rus' at that time. Before this, the only printing house was only in Moscow.
And the Assumption Cathedral today has not lost its scope and grandeur. And today, like 3 centuries ago, it is one of the largest buildings of the 17th century in Russia.
Sasha Mitrakhovich 13.03.2016 10:22
Foundation of the Valdai Iversky Monastery
The foundation of the Valdai Iversky Monastery is associated with a miraculous appearance to Patriarch Nikon. In 1652, he ordered the relics of Ivan the Terrible, killed by order of Ivan the Terrible and buried in, to be transferred to the Kremlin Assumption Cathedral. Metropolitan Nikon, accompanied by a large retinue, was ordered to go for the remains of the saint. According to legend, during this “there and back” journey, Metropolitan Philip appeared to Nikon in a dream vision and blessed his intention to build a monastery on Lake Valdai.
In the summer of 1653, work began in Valdai, and in the fall two new churches, smelling of fresh wood, already stood here. One of them, a warm one, was consecrated in the name of St. Philip, Metropolitan of Moscow, the other - in honor of the Iveron Icon of the Mother of God.
Valdai Lake has long enjoyed a bad reputation among the surrounding residents. They said that from time to time unclean spirits rise above the surface of the lake, taking the form of disgusting monsters, and in the surrounding forests one can hear either whistling or laughter.
The Patriarch took on the Valdai evil spirits with his characteristic energy. On one of his visits to the monastery under construction, he went ashore with all the clergy, served a prayer service, immersed the cross and the Gospel to the bottom of the lake and renamed the lake. Now it was to be called Holy. The name didn’t stick, but the lake’s notoriety faded. Moreover, now phenomena of a completely different kind have begun to be observed here.
There is no one like him in the world
The monastery was being developed rapidly. In 1654, the Patriarch ordered the relics of the righteous Jacob of Borovichi to be transferred here from the relatively nearby village of Borovichi, and at the same time he transported silver reliquaries with particles of the relics of the Moscow saints Peter, Alexy, Jonah and Philip to Valdai. And in 1656, the Iveron Icon of the Mother of God was solemnly welcomed at the monastery.
By this time, a magnificent stone cathedral dedicated to the Iveron image of the Blessed Virgin Mary was already being completed on the island. Construction proceeded at a truly “Nikon” pace. The foundation stone for the cathedral church was laid in May 1655, and it was consecrated in December 1656. The building amazed the imagination of contemporaries: in a hitherto remote area, in the middle of a lake, a five-domed temple rose, which would be fitting to see in a capital city.
Especially for the consecration of the Iveron Cathedral, master Alexander Grigoriev cast a thousand-pound bell, commissioned by Nikon, on which the Patriarch himself was depicted, and inside the new cathedral was decorated with a five-tier carved iconostasis (Belarusian carvers must have worked on it) and a “yellow copper” chandelier ordered abroad, “the size of a large tree, with flowers, birds and indescribable wonders.”
First class monastery
The second stage of landscaping work in the monastery dates back to this period. Under Nikon, all the buildings of the monastery, except for the Iveron Cathedral and the warm Epiphany Church with the refectory chamber, remained wooden. In the 1670s and 1680s, stone construction continued, and by the beginning of the 18th century, the monastery as a whole looked about the same as it does now.
The main income for the monastery came from pilgrims, who flocked in large numbers to the Iveron Icon of the Mother of God, which, when it was not carried around the surrounding villages, was in the Assumption Cathedral. By Tuesday of Bright Week, the day of honoring the Iveron Icon, up to fifteen thousand people sometimes gathered in the monastery. The attention of pilgrims to the Valdai Monastery became especially zealous after 1848, when the Iveron Icon became famous as the deliverer of Valdai from the cholera epidemic.
By the beginning of the 20th century, there were about seventy inhabitants in the Valdai Iveron Monastery, and the monastery itself presented a gratifying picture of well-being. The domes of the Assumption Cathedral were visible in the distance (not gold, they were gilded only in modern times), and the monastery bell sounded far over the water.
Valdai Monastery after the revolution
During the revolution, the communists took everything they could see from the monastery. The monks were deprived of the keys to all storerooms and barns. From now on, bread was distributed to the inhabitants by members of the committee, and the abbot had no right to take any actions without the knowledge of the proletarian authorities. Since December 1918, committee members forced young monks and novices to work in logging for the benefit of the state. The old and poor also found work: they worked at the water pump and in the kitchen.
In 1919, the monastery was transformed into a labor artel, the charter of which was registered in accordance with Soviet rules. It existed for eight years, after which it was closed.
After the dispersal of the artel, the monastery was first a museum, then workshops. During the war, the monastery buildings were occupied by a hospital, later - a home for disabled veterans and, finally, a forest school for children suffering from tuberculosis. In the 1970s, they decided to set up a recreation center on the picturesque island. All these successive owners did not care too much about preserving the monastery churches. The Assumption Cathedral lost its iconostasis and almost completely its paintings. Only the oak carved doors and the front forged gates have survived from its original decoration.
Sasha Mitrakhovich 28.11.2017 07:28
For many centuries, the Iveron Icon of the Most Holy Theotokos, which, according to legend, survived the iconoclastic era, was the main shrine of the Athos Iveron Monastery, its guardian. But only in the 17th century did the list from it reach Moscow - in order to become one of the most famous and beloved here too. The legend about the discovery of the Iveron Icon of the Mother of God on Mount Athos. The famous Iveron Icon of the Mother of God. . .
Sasha Mitrakhovich 28.11.2017 07:33
There are many buildings on the monastery island. The first among them, both in seniority and significance (after the Iveron Cathedral, of course), is the warm Epiphany Church with a refectory chamber. It was built under Patriarch Nikon, in 1657-1658. On the second floor of the temple, a chapel was consecrated in 1747 in honor of the Descent of the Holy Spirit on the Apostles, and in the porch - the chapel of St. Neil Stolobensky. As for the Holy Spiritual chapel, it was notable for its royal doors, sent at one time by Patriarch Nikon for the wooden Iveron Church.
A little further, above the internal monastery gates, rises an elegant church in the name of the Archangel Michael, built, like most of the buildings of the Iversky Monastery, at the end of the 17th century. During its existence, the church has undergone quite significant alterations. It is known that it was originally crowned with a wooden tent, and not with a baroque “lantern” with a bulbous dome. Everything inside has also been changed: partitions, new doors and stairs have appeared. In addition, considering the interior of the temple to be too high, it was divided in two by a wooden ceiling.
Above the outer monastery gate is a church in the name of St. Philippa, heiress of the warm wooden church that has been in the monastery since its foundation. The current building was built in the last quarter of the 17th century and, like the Archangel Michael Church, has survived to this day not without changes.
The “change” in appearance is also noticeable in the church in the name of the righteous Jacob of Borovichi, which occupies the north-eastern part of the monastery complex. It is in one connection with a two-story hospital building. Both the temple and the hospital cells, being the same age as the Archangel Michael and Filippov churches, were rebuilt, perhaps even more actively than they were, and now have a very contradictory appearance.
Of the “civil” buildings in the monastery, the abbot’s cells (last third of the 17th century), which form a single ensemble with the bell tower, deserve the most attention. Currently the building has two floors and a basement. There is a ravine on the south side of the building, so the walls of the basement rise approximately three meters above the ground and are perceived as another full floor.
The abbot's cells are of particular interest due to the surviving fragments of tiled frames discovered during the restoration process. As we were able to establish, once upon a time, superbly executed tiles decorated the facades of many monastery buildings. The technology for their production was brought to Valdai by Orsha monks.
In the first years of the existence of the Valdai Monastery, the production of “tiles” was constantly expanding. The craftsmen tested new technologies and achieved true perfection in the manufacture of tiles. Decorated with convex floral patterns and brightly colored, they had an exceptionally elegant appearance.
Patriarch Nikon soon took the best Valdai tile-makers to the New Jerusalem Monastery, and after some time the production of tiles in Valdai completely died out. And today only the platbands of the rector’s building remind of the original Valdai “tile school”.
Sasha Mitrakhovich 28.11.2017 07:46
The Valdai Monastery today is one of the most comfortable within the Novgorod region. But twenty years ago it would have made a completely different impression on the visitor.
In the early 1990s, it was scary to think how much money and effort would be spent on restoring the monastery. Many of those who came to the monastery at that time admit that they simply did not believe that anything could be done with these ruins. The buildings were in complete disrepair: the cathedral was being destroyed, the monastery bell tower had stood without a roof since the 1960s.
At the end of the 1980s, the idea of returning the Valdai Monastery to the Church had many opponents. It was supposed to make the island a resort and tourist area, and, apparently, only the calculation of the costs associated with the restoration of monastic monuments and the creation of appropriate infrastructure forced the authorities to abandon this idea.
Be that as it may, in 1991, His Holiness the Patriarch blessed the revival of the Valdai Iveron Monastery and served a prayer service in the cathedral church of the monastery before the Iveron Icon of the Mother of God.
(Russian: Valday Iversky Monastery; English: Valday Iversky Monastery)
Opening hours: 07-00 to 20-00
How to get there: You can get there by bus from St. Petersburg (from the bus station on the Obvodny Canal Embankment) to the city of Valdai, travel time is 6 - 7 hours. You can also get by train from the Moskovsky station to the Bologoe station (Tver region) travel time is about 2 hours, and from there by taxi or bus to Valdai, or by train Bologoe - Valdai (travel time - 1 hour ). From Valdai to the monastery it is about 10 km, you can take a taxi or walk.
From Veliky Novgorod to Valdai it is approximately 150 km. Direct buses go here (several times a day) Veliky Novgorod - Valdai (journey takes 3 hours). You can also get by train to Bologoe station (Tver region), and from there by taxi or bus to Valdai, or by train Bologoe - Valdai. From Valdai to the monastery it is about 10 km, you can take a taxi or walk.
From Moscow to Valdai you can get by bus Moscow - St. Petersburg from the bus station on Shchelkovskaya (run daily), or by bus Moscow - Veliky Novgorod (from the Airport terminal on Leningradsky Prospekt), the bus goes directly to the Valdai bus station, from there you can go to the Valdai Iversky Monastery take a taxi or walk. You can also get by train from Leningradsky station to Bologoe station (Tver region), travel time is 2 hours, and from there by taxi or bus to Valdai, or by train Bologoe - Valdai (travel time - 1 hour), then , also, to the monastery by taxi, or on foot.
By car you can get to Valdai from Moscow, St. Petersburg and Veliky Novgorod along the E105 or M10 highway (Moscow - St. Petersburg). On the highway there will be a turn to Valdai (do not turn), and next to it there is another turn (the road to the city of Borovichi), with a sign to the Svyatoozersky Iversky Monastery, you need to turn there, and after driving 2 km along it, turn left, already on the road to the monastery islands, and then in a straight line to the monastery.
Excursions to the Valdai Iversky Monastery here
Valdai Iversky Bogoroditsky Svyatoozersky Monastery is an Orthodox monastery located on the Selvitsky island of Lake Valdai in the Valdai district of the Novgorod region. This monastery became the first monastery built in Rus' after the Time of Troubles.
On July 25, 1652, having ascended the patriarchal throne, Patriarch Nikon expressed a desire to found a monastery in Russia in the likeness of the Iveron Monastery on Mount Athos in Greece.
Map of the Valdai Iversky Monastery
In the summer of 1653, two wooden churches were built: the Cathedral Church, in honor of the miraculous icon of the Iveron Mother of God, and the warm church, in honor of St. Philip, Metropolitan of Moscow. Archimandrite Dionysius became the first abbot of the monastery.
The incomparable beauty of the wooden complex of the monastery was noted by many. The 17th-century Syrian traveler Pavel Aleppo wrote: “Patriarch Nikon, through his efforts, erected a new monastery near the city of Novgorod, in the middle of an island on a magnificent freshwater lake, competing in this with the buildings of the royal masters...”
The main value and decoration of the Svyatoozersk monastery, without a doubt, was the Iveron Icon, which became famous for many miracles. The Iveron icon amazed the eyes and minds of the parishioners; there was nothing like it, even in the tsar’s treasury, or in his churches. The value of the decorations of this icon reached, at that time, more than 44,000 rubles in silver. Patriarch Nikon forbade all icon painters to make copies and copies of it.
Scheme of the Valdai Iversky Monastery
By the beginning of 1654, there were already 26 monks and the same number of workers in the monastery. In February of the same year, Patriarch Nikon visited the monastery under construction and renamed the Valdai settlement into the village of Bogoroditskoye, and named Lake Valdai Holy, having previously consecrated it and lowered the Gospel and the cross to the bottom. A letter from Patriarch Nikon to the Tsar has been preserved, where he reports his vision of a sign in the form of a pillar of fire over the island. The monastery itself, in addition to its previous name, was called “Svyatoozersky”. In May of the same year, by order of the tsar, Lake Valdai with the islands, as well as the cities of Borovichi, Yazhelbitsy and Vyshny Volochyok, were assigned to the Svyatoozersky Monastery.
The monastery was built and strengthened, and in 1655, in addition to all the monks, the brethren of the Belarusian Orsha Kuteinsky Monastery, numbering more than 70 people, also moved here. And in 1656, the first stone building of the monastery was completed - the Assumption Cathedral.
After the death of Archimandrite Dionysius, Archimandrite Philotheus became his successor, at that time the monastery received first-class status, and the number of brethren was 200 people.
But the Iverskaya monastery did not remain in a flourishing state for long. At the Great Church Council in 1666, Patriarch Nikon was condemned and deposed from the Patriarchal See. From that moment on, the monastery began to slowly but surely decline, and from 1712 to 1730, the monastery with all its property and land was completely assigned to the Alexander Nevsky Monastery, which was then under construction.
But even in such difficult times, there were many parishioners in the monastery. Especially many guests visited the monastery on the day of the celebration of the Iveron Icon of the Mother of God, celebrated on Tuesday of Bright Week. Solemn religious processions with the miraculous icon were held in the cities of Valdai, Borovichi, and in the districts of Novgorod and neighboring provinces.
After the revolution of 1917, the Iversky Monastery faced a sad fate. The Soviet government constantly requisitioned bread, livestock, fish, vegetables and fruits from the monastery. In addition, the golden robe from the miraculous Iveron Icon and all the ancient and precious things for liturgical use were taken from the monastery. And in 1919, the monastery was completely transformed into the Iverskaya labor artel, numbering 70 people, and having 5 hectares of monastery land and 200 hectares of gardens, vegetable gardens, arable land and pastures.
What the Iversky Monastery has not experienced. On its territory there were a historical and archival museum, a local history museum, workshops, a home for the disabled for participants in the Great Patriotic War, and a forest school for children with tuberculosis.
But, in 1991, the monastery, which was in disrepair, was returned to the Novgorod diocese. From that moment on, the Iversky Bogoroditsky Svyatoozersk Monastery began to be brought back to life. The general clutter of the territory was eliminated, the people who lived there were resettled, daily worship was resumed, and the beginning was made of the external and internal arrangement of the monastery buildings.
The shrine of the monastery became a copy of the Iveron Icon of the Mother of God, which in the 1950s - 1980s was kept in the only operating church in the Valdai region - the Peter and Paul (cemetery) church in the city of Valdai. Her new precious robe was made by craftsmen from the city of Chrysostom, and consecrated on December 25, 2006.
At the end of 2007, the comprehensive restoration of the Valdai Monastery was completed. And now, before us, he appears in a unique guise. The unique beauty and elegance of the Iversky Monastery is known far beyond Russia.
The main building of the Iverskaya monastery is the Assumption Cathedral, which over the years has not lost its grandeur; it is distinguished by its large size and monumentality. The six-pillared temple, raised on a basement with galleries and a large five-domed dome, is a kind of manifesto of the archaizing trend of Russian temple architecture of the mid-17th century. The eastern side is projected by three apses. There is a gallery around the entire temple on four sides, with three entrance porches; there are two tents on the northern and southern sides, two-story, in the form of chapels, with small gilded crosses, the same cross on the entrance porch.
The cathedral's vaults are supported by six massive pillars. Light comes here from the sides through wide windows (three windows on each of the three sides), and from above - through the windows of five domes. The length of the cathedral from the altar wall to the entrance porch doors is 6.8 meters, and the width is 21.7 meters.
On the walls of the altar and the temple there are frescoes of the 19th century, painted with oil paints. Unfortunately, 60% of the frescoes were lost during Soviet times. At the entrance to the cathedral, on the right side of the doors, the bringing to the Iveron monastery of the miraculous image of the Iveron Mother of God is depicted, and on the left - the miraculous appearance of the relics of St. James during the ice drift on the Msta River, as well as the miraculous appearance of St. James to one sick priest and another.
On the front side, a stone step adjoins the throne; on the throne there is a chased silver-plated robe and above it a carved gilded canopy. Opposite the throne, on the eastern side, under a carved gilded canopy there is an image of Christ the Savior sitting on a throne in the form of a bishop, with the Mother of God and John the Baptist standing in front.
The painting of the cathedral, in general, is poorly preserved: some compositions are completely absent, many are represented only by individual colorful fragments, and only on a few the colorful drawings are readable well enough. All surviving areas of the old painting were strengthened with a special compound and cleared. In general, during the entire period of work, the artists restored, updated and re-painted 2,956 meters of painting.
Opposite the northwestern corner of the cathedral church, there is a warm monastery church in the name of the Epiphany, built with the blessing and plan of His Holiness Patriarch Nikon in 1657 - 1658.
The Church of the Descent of the Holy Spirit on the Apostles is located above the Church of the Epiphany. It was built in 1747.
The gate church of St. Philip is located in the western part of the monastery wall of the ensemble of the Valdai Iversky Monastery. It was built in 1873 - 1874 and is a single-domed gate building with one passage arch. The building of the Living Room Cells adjoins the church on the south side, and the Stable Cells on the north side.
The church in the name of St. James Borovichi is one-story, square in plan, covered with a box vault, with a semicircular apse part. A tall, wide dome with a round drum and a spherical dome rises above the roof. During the twentieth century, the church lost its dome as it was used as a living space.
The Valdai Iversky Svyatoozersky Monastery is a masterpiece of architecture, which fortunately has survived to this day. A real pearl of Lake Valdai, this monastery protects the peace and quiet of these places. There is a sense of calm and tranquility here, and in our turbulent age of technology and progress, sometimes people simply need such feelings...
Official website of the Valdai Iversky Svyatoozersky Monastery: http://www.iveron.ru/
On January 12, 2008, His Holiness Patriarch Alexy II of Moscow and All Rus' will consecrate the Assumption Cathedral, the main church of the Valdai Monastery. This monastery was the first monastery built in Rus' after the Time of Troubles. Portal Patriarchy.ru publishes a story about the rich history of the monastery, which was created in the mid-17th century by Patriarch Nikon in the image of the Iveron Monastery on Athos.
History of the creation of the monastery
The Valdai monastery became the first monastery built in Rus' after the Time of Troubles. Having ascended the Patriarchal throne on July 25, 1652, Patriarch Nikon expressed his intention to found a monastery on Lake Valdai to Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich. The latter approved the Patriarch's plan and allocated funds from the treasury for the construction of the monastery.
In the summer of 1653, two wooden churches were built and ready for consecration. The cathedral church was consecrated in honor of the miraculous icon of the Iveron Mother of God, and the warm one - in the name of St. Philip, Metropolitan of Moscow. The Patriarch appointed Archimandrite Dionysius as the first abbot of the monastery.
During his first visit to the monastery under construction, Nikon renamed the Valdai settlement into the village of Bogoroditskoye, and also named Valdai Lake Holy, having previously consecrated it and lowered the Gospel and the cross to the bottom. The monastery itself, in addition to its previous name, was named Svyatoozersk.
By the beginning of 1654, according to Patriarch Nikon himself, there were already 26 monks and the same number of workers in the monastery.
To glorify the monastery, by order of the Patriarch, the holy relics of Jacob Borovichsky were transferred. At the same time - in 1654 - arks with particles of the relics of Moscow saints Peter, Jonah and Philip, and many other saints were brought to the monastery.
In May 1654, a royal charter was granted, assigning to the monastery not only Lake Valdai with the islands, but also other estates.
In 1655, the brethren of the Belarusian Orsha Kuteinsky Monastery, more than 70 people, moved to the Iversky Monastery. The move was associated with the oppression of Orthodox believers by the Uniates. Immigrants from Belarus, Ukraine and Lithuania later joined the Iversk Brotherhood. Hieromonk Dionysius II was appointed vicar from among the visiting brethren. Among the monks was the future Patriarch Joachim, as well as Isaac of Polotsk, the brother of Simeon of Polotsk. The monks transported all their property and printing house with them to the new place. With the arrival of the Kutein monks, book printing and bookbinding began to develop. Before this, there was only one printing house in Rus' - the Sovereign Printing House in Moscow.
The production of colored tiles in Russia also began in the monastery. Partially preserved tiles on one of the windows of the abbot's building have survived to this day.
In 1656, the first stone building of the monastery was completed - the Assumption Cathedral. It was consecrated that same year. A copy of the miraculous Iveron Icon of the Mother of God was also delivered here from Moscow.
The beauty of the wooden complex of the monastery was noted by many contemporaries. The Syrian traveler of the 17th century, Pavel Aleppo, noted: “Nikon, through his efforts, erected a new monastery near the city of Novgorod in the middle of an island on a magnificent freshwater lake, competing in this with the buildings of the royal masters...”
Iveron icon
The Iveron Icon, located on Mount Athos, became famous for many miracles. The rumor about the miraculous image spread throughout Russia through pilgrims. His Holiness Patriarch Nikon, while still the Novospassky Archimandrite, turned to the Archimandrite of the Iveron Athos Monastery Pachomius with a request to send a copy of the miraculous Iveron Icon of the Blessed Virgin Mary, as well as to photograph and send the exact plan of the Iveron Athos Monastery. The idea to create New Athos on Russian soil dates back to this time.
In response to this request, a prayer service was held on Mount Athos by the brethren numbering 365 people before the painting of the image began. The icon painter Iamblichus Romanov painted a copy of the Iveron image, and a year later the icon, accompanied by Athonite monks, arrived in Moscow. On October 13, 1648, in Moscow, the Iveron Icon was solemnly greeted by Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich and the Patriarch with a large crowd of people. The icon was brought to the Iversky Monastery in 1656 for the consecration of the Assumption Cathedral.
According to the testimony of Paul of Aleppo, this icon “...exceeds any surprise, it amazes the gaze and mind of the viewer: there is nothing like it even in the tsar’s treasury, nor in his churches, for we have seen all the icons...”. The value of the decorations of this icon at that time reached more than 44,000 silver rubles. Patriarch Nikon forbade all icon painters to make copies and copies of it.
History of the monastery in the 17th century - beginning. XX centuries
After the death of Archimandrite Dionysius, Archimandrite Philotheus became his successor. The monastery received first-class status; the number of brethren at that time was 200 people.
But the Iverskaya monastery did not remain in a flourishing state for long. At the Great Church Council in 1666, Patriarch Nikon was condemned and deposed from the Patriarchal See. During Nikon's disgrace, all of his monasteries (Iversky Valdai, Krestny Onega and Resurrection New Jerusalem) were closed. These monasteries were recognized as having been created “not according to the statutes of the Holy Fathers,” as a result of which the estates were taken into the treasury, and their construction was stopped. The Iveron brethren, together with the abbot, were placed in various monasteries of other monasteries. However, already in 1668, the harsh sentence was canceled, Archimandrite Philotheus and his brethren returned to the Iverskaya monastery, and all previously taken away privileges and lands were also returned.
The main building of the Iversky Monastery is the Assumption Cathedral, which to this day has not lost its grandeur. This is one of the largest buildings of the 17th century in Russia. The cathedral is distinguished by its simplicity and monumental architectural forms. The ancient painting of the Assumption Cathedral has not survived to this day. From the original decoration of the cathedral to this day, forged door grilles and carved oak doors from the 17th century remain.
By the beginning of the 18th century, the Iversky Monastery became impoverished and fell into decay. From 1712 to 1730 the monastery with all its property and land was assigned to the Alexander Nevsky Lavra, which was then under construction. During these years, the Iversky Monastery lost, along with its independence, most of its church property.
Despite the poor material side, the monastery was distinguished by the high pious and spiritual life of the brethren. The abbot of the monastery, Archimandrite Lavrenty, gained particular fame. With his spirituality, kindness and gentle disposition, he earned universal respect. He was a spiritual mentor not only for the brethren of the monastery, but also for many residents of Valdai and the surrounding area. Under his leadership, all the monastery churches and residential buildings were repaired, and many valuable utensils were purchased for the monastery. He also organized a “hospice house”, where he received numerous pilgrims and wanderers. The Iveron monastery fed thousands of people, and its supplies did not become scarce. The abbot received everyone, consoled them as best he could, settled them for the night, and made sure that the pilgrims who arrived at the monastery were well-fed and satisfied.
Especially many guests visited the monastery on the day of the celebration of the Iveron Icon of the Mother of God, celebrated on Tuesday of Bright Week. Under the leadership of Archimandrite Lawrence, solemn religious processions with the miraculous icon were established in the cities of Valdai, Borovichi, in the districts of Novgorod and neighboring provinces.
Internal monastic life was distinguished by strict regulations. At the monastery there was a strict selection of those wishing to devote their lives to God, but not everyone withstood monastic obedience.
At the beginning of the 20th century, the holy monastery was often visited by the church writer S.A. Nilus, he lived with his family in Valdai for about 5 years.
Monastery during the years of Soviet power
After the events of 1917, the monastery faced a sad fate. Since January 1918, the Soviet government constantly requisitioned bread, livestock, fish, vegetables and fruits from the monastery. In the fall of 1918, the Soviet authorities took away from the monastery: the golden robe from the miraculous Iveron Icon, all ancient and precious things for liturgical use. However, soon, by order of the Commissioner of the People's Commissariat of Education, all things were returned. A new campaign to confiscate church valuables began a few years later and during that period the Iversky Monastery was completely plundered. At the same time, the keys to the monastery storerooms and barns were taken away from the monks, and a Working Committee was formed in the monastery, which demanded from the abbot his complete submission in monastic affairs.
In 1919, the monastery was transformed into the Iverskaya labor artel with a charter registered by the Soviet authorities. The artel consisted of 70 people, had 5 hectares of monastery land and 200 hectares - occupied by gardens, vegetable gardens, plowing, and pastures. During the hungry years of Bolshevism, the monastery was engaged in works of mercy and distributed free bread to the local population.
In 1927, the Iverskaya labor artel was examined by the People's Commissariat of Agriculture. The report noted that the labor community was “too closely connected with the Iveron miraculous icon.” This was the reason for its deregistration and the intention to “cleanse the territory of the monastery from the non-labor element.” The monastery was closed, and the Iveron Icon of the Mother of God in a gold and richly decorated frame was taken away to an unknown direction.
During Soviet rule, there was a historical and archival museum and a museum of local history on the territory. In the 1930s, workshops were located in the monastery premises. During wartime there was a hospital, then a home for the disabled for participants in the Great Patriotic War, and a forest school for children with tuberculosis. In the 70s, a village appeared on the island, and a recreation center was opened on the territory of the monastery.
Restoration of the monastery
Archbishop Lev of Novgorod and Staraya Russa made great efforts to return the monastery to the Novgorod diocese. In 1991, the monastery was visited by His Holiness Patriarch of Moscow and All Rus' Alexy II. In the Assumption Cathedral, he performed a prayer service before the returned Iveron Icon of the Mother of God. The monastery was transferred to the Novgorod diocese in disrepair. The destruction of temples and buildings was so significant that many pilgrims who visited the monastery did not believe in the revival of the Iveron monastery.
The first abbot of the monastery after the transfer of its diocese became Abbot Stefan. During the years of his abbotship, the general clutter of the territory was eliminated, the people who lived there were resettled, daily services were resumed, and the beginning was made of the external and internal arrangement of the monastery buildings.
In 1995, during the All-Russian Festival of Bell Ringers held on the territory of the monastery, several bells were donated. The number of monks more than doubled, and soon the first monastic tonsures took place.
In 1998, Archbishop Leo consecrated the Church of the Epiphany. Divine services were resumed in the Assumption Cathedral; Temporary iconostases were installed in both churches.
In June 2002, vicarial obedience was entrusted to Hieromonk Nil, but the time of his work in the new capacity turned out to be tragically short: at the end of 2002, while rushing to a festive service in Veliky Novgorod, he and two monks of the monastery died in a car accident. Now the abbot of the monastery is Archimandrite Ephraim (Barbinyagra).
Currently, the monastery library is being revived, containing several thousand books on theology and history of the Church. A small museum dedicated to Patriarch Nikon and the history of the monastery has been opened.
At the end of 2007, the comprehensive restoration of the Valdai Monastery was completed. In total, over the period from 2004 to 2008, more than three thousand people of various specialties took part in the restoration of the monastery.
On January 12, 2008, His Holiness Patriarch Alexy II of Moscow and All Rus' performed the rite of the Small Consecration of the Iversky Cathedral (formerly Assumption) Church of the monastery, as well as the Divine Liturgy in this cathedral. On the same day, in the presence of the President of Russia, His Holiness the Patriarch performed a prayer service before the Iveron Icon of the Mother of God in the newly consecrated church.
Based on materials from Internet sources, the Press Service of the Moscow Patriarchate and the website of the Valdai Monastery
Patriarchy.ru
The Valdai Iversky Monastery is famous for the miraculous icon preserved in the Assumption Cathedral, as well as the gilded domes of this Orthodox church. The place for the monastery was chosen by the reformer of Russian Orthodoxy, Patriarch Nikon, when he was Metropolitan of Novgorod. The picturesque Selvitsky Island on Lake Valdai, named St. Nikon, became the site of the construction of one of three monasteries founded by this primate of the Russian Orthodox Church.
The model for the construction of the monastery on Lake Valdai, or the Holy Lake, was the Greek Iversky Monastery on Mount Athos, and its full name sounds like the Valdai Iversky Svyatoozersky Bogoroditsky Monastery. They decided to place it on an island in the center of the lake.
Selvitsky Island in the southern part has an artificial connection with the largest island of the reservoir - Ryabinov, which in a similar way communicates with the mainland shore. On the western shore of the island, a monastery boat dock was built, near which the Holy Gate of the main entrance was located.
The foundation of the monastery took place in 1653, after the approval of the plan by Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich Romanov, who allocated funding from the state treasury. The consecration of the completed stone Assumption Cathedral took place at the end of 1656 personally by Patriarch Nikon.
The less than fifteen years of his patriarchate were full of many innovations - church books and icons were brought into conformity with the Greek canons, bows from the waist and the sign of the cross with three fingers were introduced. All this led to a split among believers and the emergence of Old Believers.
Nikon sought equal participation of the church in governing the state with the tsar, which was decisively rejected by Alexei Mikhailovich, and the patriarch was subjected to disgrace, and then deposition with subsequent exile.
The general view of the Iversky Monastery on the Selvitsky Island of Valdai, or Holy Lake, has been preserved from earlier times. A man-made isthmus with a bridge connects it with the neighboring Ryabinov Island, and that with the mainland.
The remaining buildings of the Valdai Iversky Monastery were built later than the Assumption Cathedral, as was the fortress wall enclosing the monastery, with a total length of more than a kilometer. The contour of the walls almost followed the outlines of Selvitsky Island, separating almost 6 hectares of its territory.
The glacial origin of the reservoir determines the almost complete absence of current, calm water surface and abundance of coastal vegetation.
In the current appearance of the monastery one can see a convenient entrance from the south side, parking for tourist buses and a separate car park for the monastery brethren and clergy. The island's territory is almost devoid of vegetation, except for the western and part of the northern shore. The glacial origin of the reservoir determines the almost complete absence of current, calm water surface and abundance of coastal vegetation.
According to Orthodox canons, the main entrance to the monastery territory is located on the western side. The Holy Gate is made in the form of an arched passage in a two-story building, the upper tier of which is the gateway church of St. Philip. He is famous for his service in the Solovetsky Monastery as abbot, and then for his service as Moscow metropolitan.
Philip protested against the cruel methods of rule of Ivan the Terrible, for which he was removed from office and secretly executed by the tsar's henchman Malyuta Skuratov. Canonized by the Orthodox Church on the eve of the start of construction of the Iversky Monastery, the gate temple was named in his honor.
The central volume of the church is covered with four gable roofs with a spherical vault between them. On the vault there is an octagonal drum and a dome crowning it - a dome with a cross. The left wing is a staircase; the right wing on the first floor is a church shop.
The adjacent one-story buildings house residential monastic cells. Above the entrance arch there is a copy of the icon of the Iveron Mother of God - the Gatekeeper, or Goalkeeper.
It so happened historically that the Valdai Iversky Monastery has two Holy Gates, built in an earlier period and found themselves inside the territory. Between both entrance structures there is a tiled path with lanterns along it.
The second arched entrance is built in a massive rectangular building, on the roof of which is built the Church of the Archangel Michael, the leader (archangel) of the heavenly forces in the fight against the devil. The gate temple has a relatively small square base with an octagonal turret on the roof, on which there is a blank drum with a dome and a cross.
Premises for various purposes are attached to the gate on both sides; the entire building forms a transverse dividing line between the western and eastern parts of the monastery territory.
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One of the vitally important buildings on the territory of the monastery was the refectory, built in an ensemble with the Church of the Epiphany immediately next to the Assumption Cathedral. To conduct divine services in winter, a warm church was necessary; Nikon himself ordered it to be provided in the monastery complex.
The building is built on two floors, with utility and storage rooms located below, and a refectory on the second floor. The front porch on the west side consists of a canopied staircase, parallel to the wall and fenced on the outside, with arched openings in the fence. The southern porch is decorated with faceted columns supporting the shelter portal.
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Adjacent to the refectory on the eastern side is the Church of the Epiphany - a single-domed temple with a square lower tier and a tower of 8 sides with window openings, a blind drum on a hemispherical roof, and a dome with a cross on top. The decorations around the window openings - stylized kokoshniks and double arches above the windows, like some other elements, are made in red, contrasting with the whiteness of the walls.
The three-tiered tented bell tower of the Valdai Iversky Monastery is combined on a single base with the abbot’s building for the residence of senior clergy. The buildings stretch along the southern monastery wall. The square of the second tier goes into the octagon of the belfry, on the wall of which there is a clock.
Every 15 minutes the bells sound a chime that can be heard throughout the island. The bell tower is crowned by a tent in the shape of a sharp octagonal pyramid with dormer windows (chandeliers) on each side, a blind drum at the top and a dome with a cross.
The rectory has two residential floors and a basement; a distinctive feature of this building is the tiled decoration of the window openings.
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The main and oldest building of the Iversky Monastery is the cathedral, first named after the miraculous icon, then renamed the Assumption Cathedral and acquired its original name in the new millennium. A feature of the temple architecture of the Nikon era is a covered gallery on all sides of the building.
The main (western) entrance to the cathedral is designed as a small chapel, the side chapels have two floors and double-sided staircases to enter them. The building, rectangular in plan, consists of three naves, separated internally by supporting columns (pillars).
On the eastern side of the temple it has three altar apses, inside of which there is a three-part altar. Five large domes with gilded domes complete the majestic structure of the Cathedral of the Iveron Icon of the Mother of God. You can get a full impression of the appearance of the cathedral by viewing the slider.
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The domes of the Assumption Cathedral of the Valdai Iversky Monastery now shine over a long distance in good weather.
From the time of its construction until 2008, the domes of all five chapters of the Assumption Cathedral were covered with copper sheets, which are characterized by gradual oxidation and acquisition of a dark color. For reasons of increasing the attractiveness of the appearance of the cathedral, the Novgorod diocese decided to cover the domes with gold leaf, which was done during the last restoration of the temple.
Three thousand packs (books) of the thinnest sheets of precious metal, 4 grams each, were used for gilding, that is, 12 kilograms for the entire volume of gilding work.
The richness of the interior decoration of the Cathedral of the Valdai Iversky Monastery, updated during the latest restoration. The massive entrance doors of the Assumption Cathedral are decorated with filigree wood carvings.
The main shrine of the Valdai Iveron Monastery is the miraculous icon of the Iveron Mother of God, which gave it its name. The relic is placed in a prominent place at a height convenient for viewing on the right pillar closest to the iconostasis. At the foot of the pillar there is a separate platform for admirers.
The precious frame of the holy image leaves only the faces and hands of the characters exposed, but they are also quite expressive. The pedestal in front of the location of the image is convenient for those who kiss the icon and kneel in front of it.
The icon located in the island temple is supposedly a copy (an exact copy) made directly in the Iveron Monastery on Mount Athos in Greece. The Greek monastery founded by Georgians, which miraculously found the miraculous icon floating on the waves, allegedly presented the image to the Russian Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich, who transferred it to the Assumption Cathedral.
The origin of the original icon is not known for certain; legend says that it was painted by the Evangelist Luke. One of the apostles who described the life of Christ is indeed known as the first icon painter to depict the Virgin Mary.
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The paintings of the walls and columns, as well as the images of the five-tiered altar iconostasis, were more than half lost during the period of persecution of religion and restored in a more modern icon-painting manner. Also, thanks to the skill of the restorers, the richly decorated supporting pillars appear in all their splendor - columns that bear the weight of the upper tier of the building.
The covered gallery surrounding the altar was also used to place images of Orthodox saints with health candlesticks opposite.
One of the attractions of the monastery territory is the ancient oak tree growing here, which is mistakenly considered to have grown from the acorn of the oldest tree on the planet, described in the Bible, but attracts increased attention from tourists visiting the temple. There is a legend that the tree was grown from the acorn of the famous Mamre oak, or Abraham tree.
The sacred oak tree on the banks of the Jordan River is over 5 thousand years old and witnessed Abraham's meeting with God in the person of the Holy Trinity. The relationship of the Valdai tree with this relic is not possible, because the oldest tree on the planet has not produced acorns for a long time, at least during the period of growth of the oak tree in the monastery (approximately 250 years).
The oak tree on the territory of the Iversky Monastery attracts visitors, among other things, due to the Slavic belief about charging energy from trees. It became a tradition to lean your back against the trunk, supposedly replenishing vitality, including enveloping the oak tree with a whole group of people along the entire circumference of the trunk.
To monks, such rituals seem pagan and intolerant on the territory of the monastery, but it is awkward to prohibit them directly. Therefore, a copy of the miraculous icon was mounted on a tree so that people would kiss it instead of the old custom. However, the ancient tradition of distant ancestors is still alive.
At the end of this short review of the Valdai Iversky Monastery, future visitors are invited to check their own assimilation of the material presented. The published slider contains a number of pictures. They photograph from different directions objects that were covered in previous materials, as well as those that remained without description, including the unmentioned Printing Tower, where Nikon developed local printing. The tall, square structure is crowned with a pyramidal roof of complex configuration, a drum and a spire with a weather vane.
Nothing was said about the towers in the monastery wall, one of which is depicted. It is necessary to determine the location of this structure, relying on the structure of the adjacent walls and using the title image of the review. In the same way, you can identify all other objects of the Valdai Iversky Monastery, no matter from what angle the picture was taken.
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This unique quiz arranged for visitors to our site does not serve the purpose of testing school work. The humorous event is designed to arouse interest in what is being described and encourage a visit and personal inspection. The Valdai Iversky Monastery and its wonderful surroundings are worth it, and the trip will bring indelible impressions.
The Iversky Svyatoozersky Bogoroditsky Monastery located nearby on the Valdai Island gives a special charm to Valdai.
How to get to the monasteryThe motor ship "Zarya" runs between Valdai and the island (it was running, but has not been running since 2016), schedule and cost.
By taxi. Taxi service numbers are available. The approximate cost of the trip Valdai - Monastery is 200-300 rubles (summer 2016).
In winter, walk on ice across the lake. A good well-trodden path, sun, fresh air. The distance is approximately 3 kilometers.
The Iversky Monastery was founded by Metropolitan Nikon of Novgorod in 1653. The first stone building of the monastery was the Assumption Cathedral (1656), which has survived to this day. Its height is 43 meters. The perimeter of the monastery (along the walls) is 1050 meters, the area (within the walls) is 5.7 hectares. Since 1991, the monastery has become operational again.
History of the monastery
Having ascended the patriarchal throne on July 25, 1652, Nikon expressed his intention to found a monastery in Russia in the image and likeness of the Iveron Monastery on Mount Athos. Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich approved the patriarch's enterprise and allocated funds from the treasury for the construction of the monastery. According to Pavel of Aleppo, the monastery was supposed to be built in the “Athos architectural traditions”; even the monastic vestments had to correspond to Greek models.
The choice of location for the monastery is connected with the vision that Nikon had during his trip to Solovki to retrieve the relics of Metropolitan Philip. Construction began in the summer of 1653, and by the fall two wooden churches were built and ready for consecration. The cathedral church was consecrated in honor of the Iveron Icon, and the warm one - in the name of St. Philip of Moscow. The Patriarch appointed Archimandrite Dionysius as the first abbot of the monastery. During his first visit to the monastery under construction in February 1654, Nikon renamed the Valdai settlement into the village of Bogoroditskoye, and also named Valdai Lake Saint, having previously consecrated it and lowered the Gospel and the cross to the bottom (as local legend says). A letter from the patriarch to the king has been preserved, where he reports a vision of a sign in the form of a pillar of fire over the island. The monastery itself, in addition to its previous name, was called “Svyatoozersky”.
In 1653, under the supervision of the Patriarch, stone construction of monastery churches and buildings began. Nikon himself consecrated the newly created monastery; By order of the Patriarch, in February 1654 the holy relics of Jacob Borovichsky were transferred to the monastery from the Borovichi Monastery.
In May 1654, the royal charter was granted, assigning to the monastery not only Valdai Lake with the islands, but also other estates: Borovichi, Yazhelbitsy, Vyshny Volochyok. The Old Russian and some other monasteries of the Novgorod land were assigned to the monastery.
In 1655, the brethren of the Belarusian Orsha Kuteinsky Monastery, more than 70 people, moved to the monastery. Among the inhabitants at that time was the future Patriarch Joachim, as well as Isaac of Polotsk, the brother of Simeon of Polotsk. The monks transported all their property and printing house with them to the new place. With the arrival of the Kutein monks, book printing and bookbinding began to develop.
In 1656, the construction of the Assumption Cathedral was completed. On December 16 of the same year it was consecrated. Together with the Patriarch, Metropolitans of Novgorod Makariy and Sarsky Pitirim, Archbishop of Tver Lavrenty and numerous clergy from various dioceses of Russia arrived at the celebration. The cathedral is distinguished by its simplicity and monumental architectural forms. In 2008, Patriarch Alexy II renamed the Assumption Cathedral into a cathedral in honor of the Iveron Icon of the Mother of God.
By the beginning of the 18th century, the monastery fell into decay. From 1712 to 1730, the monastery with all its property and land was assigned to the Alexander Nevsky Monastery under construction. Even a large monastery bell was transported to the monastery of the northern capital. In 1764, the Iversky Monastery was founded in the first class.
In 1919, the monastery was transformed into the Iverskaya labor artel, numbering 70 people, and having 5 hectares of monastery land and 200 hectares of gardens, vegetable gardens, arable land, and pastures.
In 1927, the artel was examined by the People's Commissariat of Agriculture, whose report noted that the labor community was “too closely connected with the Iveron miraculous icon.” The last remark served as the reason for the deregistration of the artel; The monastic community was liquidated, and the Iveron Icon in an expensive frame was taken away to an unknown direction.
Subsequently, on the territory of the monastery there were: a historical and archival museum, a local history museum, workshops, a home for the disabled for participants in the Great Patriotic War, and a forest school for children with tuberculosis. In the 1970s, a village was created on the island, and a recreation center was opened on the territory of the monastery.
Restoration and recent history
In 1991, the monastery, which was in disrepair, was returned to the Novgorod diocese. The first abbot of the monastery after the transfer of its diocese became Abbot Stefan (Popkov). In 1998, Archbishop Leo (Tserpicki) consecrated the Church of the Epiphany. Divine services were resumed in the Assumption Cathedral. At the end of 2007, a comprehensive restoration of the monastery was completed.
On May 5, 1997, by decree of Archbishop Leo, Archimandrite Ephraim (Barbinyagra) was appointed vicar of the monastery. In June 2002, he was replaced, and on November 25, 2007, by decree of Patriarch Alexy II, Ephraim was reinstated in his position.
The shrine of the monastery became a copy of the Iveron Icon of the Mother of God, which in the 1950s - 1980s was kept in the only operating church in the Valdai region - the Peter and Paul (cemetery) church in Valdai. Her new precious robe, made by craftsmen from the city of Zlatoust, was consecrated on December 25, 2006.
On January 11, 2008, Patriarch Alexy was expected to arrive at the monastery to consecrate the restored Assumption (Iveron) Cathedral. On January 12, the Patriarch celebrated the Divine Liturgy in the Iversky Cathedral Church, before performing the rite of the Lesser Consecration of the Cathedral. After the liturgy, the Patriarch performed a prayer service, which was attended by Russian President V.V. Putin.
In April 2008, it was announced that a decision had been made to gild the five domes of the Iveron Cathedral for the first time, for which “about three thousand so-called “golden books” will be needed.” The current colorful coloring of the facades and gilding of the domes have no precedents in the history of the monastery.
On September 19, 2009, the Valdai Iversky Monastery was visited by Kirill, Patriarch of Moscow and All Rus'. In January 2011, the restoration of the fresco painting of the Assumption (Iveron Cathedral), in the altar and throughout the temple to the lower tier was completed. There is a small museum dedicated to Patriarch Nikon and the history of the monastery.
You can get to the monastery by excursion or regular boat, as well as by car. To do this, you need to drive around Valdai until the turn to Borovichi, drive there for about a kilometer, and then turn onto a small local road to the left, which after a kilometer will lead you to the bridge to Ryabinovy Island, and then to the monastery. By the way, from the monastery you can wade through a shallow strait to the neighboring island - Muravyiny. On it you will see huge century-old pine trees, as well as a small internal Deaf Lake.Created by Patriarch Nikon, in the image of the Iveron monastery on Mount Athos, it was the embodiment of the idea of Russian continuity in the heritage of Byzantine spiritual culture. The richest and most famous of the monasteries of that time, the monastery became a center of spiritual enlightenment, one of the few centers of book printing in Rus', a place where crafts originated and developed.
Now monastic life is being restored in the monastery. Every day, over the snow-white “ship” with the golden onions of churches, surrounded by the waters of the lake, the wonderful Valdai ringing rings, inviting pilgrims to offer a common prayer to God and venerate the shrines of the monastery.