Holy Intercession Cathedral
Holy Intercession Cathedral is located in the city of Okhtyrka, in Sumy region. It is one of the best examples of the Ukrainian Baroque mid-18th century, erected in 1768 on the place of a small wooden church. In 2007 Holy Intercession Cathedral was recognized as one of the seven wonders of Sumy region.
The Holy Intercession Cathedral’s History begins in 1751, the year when the Holy Synod issued an order to recognize the Icon of Our Lady, miraculously appeared in Okhtyrka, as a wonder-working one. According to the legend, the dean of wooden Intercession Church – Danyil Lantrativs’kyi – has found the Icon of Our Lady near the church and miracles started happen. The pastor argued that the icon had emitted the light. An iconographer, who took it for a restoration, said that before he started, he had heard a voice commanding him to carry the icon to where he took it. After numerous inspections, Empress Elizabeth and the Holy Synod recognized the icon as the miraculous one, and have decided to build a stone cathedral instead the old one.
It took 17 years to complete the cathedral’s construction in 1768. The construction was engineered by famous architect of those times Rastrelli and Fedir Kachenovs’kyi, an advisor of Empress Elizabeth. Two altars were consecrated after the construction had been completed – the Placing of the Honourable Robe of Virgin Mary, as well as St Zacharias and Elizabeth. After several years the central altar, in the name of the Intercession of Virgin Mary, was completed. It has been painted by Academician of Painting Ivan Kablukov.
Today, beautiful and majestic cathedral of 46 meters high attracts many tourists. The interior of the temple is particularly attractive – decorated with pilasters and capitals of the Ionic order, mouldings with floral and rocaille elements. If you look at the cathedral from the air, it will resemble you a giant ship of 24 sazhens long, 14 sazhens wide and 30 sazhens high (sazhen is an Old Russian measure of length).Intercession Cathedral impresses with its grandeur and magically radiated serenity. In addition, here you can see a copy of the legendary icon Our Lady of Okhtyrka. People say its original is in Canada, in a private collection of an American millionaire. There are two more buildings of the Holy Intercession Ensemble you might be interested in – Presentation of Mary Church-Belfry of 1784 and Nativity Church of 1825.
It is easy to get to Holy Intercession Cathedral. It is located on 1, Pushkina Street, the city of Okhtyrka, Sumy region.
