VLADIMIR PUTIN
ARCHIVE OF THE OFFICIAL SITE
OF THE 2008-2012 PRIME MINISTER
OF THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION
VLADIMIR PUTIN
ARCHIVE OF THE OFFICIAL SITE
OF THE 2008-2012 PRIME MINISTER
OF THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION
VLADIMIR PUTIN
The decision to build the cathedral was made at the diocesan meeting held on August 9, 1999. Twelve architects and architectural groups from Petropavlovsk and Sevastopol took part in the open design competition.
On June 18, 2000, the Day of the Holy Life-Giving Trinity, the construction area was consecrated by the diocesan priests. On June 28, 2002, the first stone was laid, and a steel capsule with relics of Saints Anthony, John, and Eustathius and the foundation letter were placed in the cathedral's foundation.
Construction has proceeded in line with the design of architect Oleg Lukomsky. In addition to the construction of the cathedral with two or three side altars, the project also provides for reconstructing the current Church of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker and the former café Commander adjacent to it, constructing the chapel, diocesan administrative offices and other necessary service rooms comprising the Petropavlovsk Kremlin.
According to the estimates of the institution Kamchatgrazhdanproekt, the cost of constructing the Orthodox Church of the Holy Life-Giving Trinity will total 104 million roubles.
Donations made by parishioners, natural persons and legal entities (including Vladimir Putin and Patriarch Alexy II), and charity funds supported construction in the first six years. During this period, 49 million roubles were invested in it. However, in the end, Gazprom took charge of the project's financing.
Iconographers from Volgodonsk and Sergiyev Posad were invited to paint the cathedral. Alexander Tanichev, a member of the Union of Russian Painters, led the group of iconographers. The paintings have been done with mineral colours in the traditional Russian style. The paint will turn into stone within a definite time period, enabling the frescoes to remain unchanged for ages. The icon painters will end up depicting about 200 biblical and evangelical characters.
Under the blessing of Alexy II, the lower premises of the cathedral will become a concert hall once the upper part is decorated and painted. The iconostasis will be brought to the upper cathedral from the lower one. The acoustics of the hall are unique for Kamchatka: the slightest sound, even a whisper, can be heard in every corner of the hall without any microphones. The lower cathedral is to be painted with images depicting scenes from the history of the Orthodox faith in Kamchatka, in particular, images of the first missionaries (Archimandrite Martinian, Saint Innocent-Veniaminov, Metropolitan Nestor-Anisimov, Prokhor Gromov and so forth). There will also be images depicting events in the history of Kamchatka, first and foremost, the victory over the British-French squadron in 1854. The entire history of Kamchatka will be represented on the walls of the hall.
The cathedral is set to be opened for parishioners in late September 2010.
