The doctor drives and drives through the snowy plain. The doctor rides, rides through the snowy plain Excursions included in the tour program

Group meeting at 08:85 at the metro station. "Kuzminki"
At 09:00 departure for an excursion along the Yegoryevskoye Highway (~60 km, 2 hours) / Travel information.

We invite you to visit one of the most interesting cities in the Moscow region - Yegoryevsk, which is located just 100 km from Moscow.

On the way to Yegoryevsk you will get acquainted with an interesting and original region. Guslitsy... a mysterious, distinctive area. Its boundaries are unsteady and uncertain, its history is full of semi-fantastic legends and it is in no hurry to reveal its secrets.

In the past, the Guslitsky region was rightly called “Old Believer Palestine.” In the public consciousness a new and recent history The Russian Old Believers are closely connected with the regions of the Russian north, Siberia, as well as with the far abroad, where the Old Believers fled to escape persecution after the church schism of the mid-17th century. However, surprisingly, one of these areas turned out to be in close proximity to Moscow, less than a hundred miles away, and it was called Guslitsy. Gradually, an entire subregion in the east of the Moscow region acquired pronounced features of local economic, ethnographic and confessional identity. Old Believers have always jealously preserved and supported ancient traditions. The culture of the Old Believers Guslitsa was very high level. In the Guslitsky villages they poured copper icons and crosses, folding ones. This casting, called Guslitsky, is distinguished by great diversity. Icons were painted in a number of villages. In many villages they copied ancient books, decorating their headpieces with unique paintings, called Guslitsky.

Before reaching Yegoryevsk, a little deeper into Guslitsy, the excursion will stop at the village. Ustyanovo is an important Old Believer center in the past. The brick Church of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker, one of the best Guslitsky Old Believer churches, built in 1910-1914, has been preserved. in neo-Russian style arch. N.G. Martyanov.
Then the road leads to the village of Shuvoe, where the guide will show the historical part of the city, where the wooden Trinity Church, traditional for Guslitsy, has been preserved.
Passing the village Ryzhevo, the tour will stop to admire the small wooden Vvedenskaya Church with an amazing fate.
The church was built according to the “model design” of N.A. Shokhina. In 1872, it was demonstrated at the Polytechnic Exhibition in Moscow, then it was staged in Lyublino, a Moscow region. It was transported to Ryzhevo in 1927. The picturesque temple was not closed and always evokes constant admiration.
Arrival in Yegoryevsk
In the cozy old Yegoryevsk, which is now recognized as a historical monument of urban planning art of the 19th century, we will have a sightseeing tour, during which we will see the historical part of the city, local attractions, including “Big Ben” - the tower of the Khludov factory. We will visit the Alexander Nevsky Cathedral, the Trinity-Mariinsky Monastery, and the Old Believer Church of St. George the Victorious.
The culmination of the tour will be a visit to the Yegoryevsk Historical and Art Museum, the oldest museum in the Moscow region, a multiple winner All-Russian competition“A Changing Museum in a Changing World” and a nominee for the “European Museum of the Year” 2010 award.
The exhibition of the museum, which is often called the “Small Hermitage”, is magnificent. The museum is equipped with modern interactive technologies that will not leave anyone indifferent. The exhibition halls, with a total area of one and a half thousand square meters, are built in the form of an enfilade. They present the best products of crafts and production in Russia of the 18th-19th centuries: gold embroidery, northern carved bone, artistic metal, carved and painted wood, glass, porcelain, Gzhelia ceramics, etc. The halls are painted with ornaments that seem to have evolved into architectural forms with pages of handwritten Old Believer books of local Guslitsky writing. The light-acoustic exhibition “Extravaganza of Light” is very original - rays reflected in the edges of cups and glasses scatter across the hall in thousands of multi-colored splashes.
Departure to Moscow around 7 pm

The cost of the service “The City of Yegoryevsk and “Old Believer Palestine” includes::

Transport services and travel information;
Accompanying guide services
Excursion program:
- Ustyanovo village: St. Nicholas Church;
- Shuvoe village: Trinity Church;
- With. Ryzhevo: Vvedenskaya Church;
- Yegoryevsk:
  - sightseeing tour;
  - Old Believer Church of St. George the Victorious;
  - Alexander Nevsky Cathedral;
  - Trinity-Mariinsky Monastery;
  - Yegoryevsk Historical and Art Museum.

Special Conditions::

The service provider company reserves the right to change the order of visiting excursion sites
The starting time of the excursion is 09:00
The meeting point for the excursion is at the station. m. "Kuzminki"
Duration of the excursion - 12 hours
It is highly advisable to adhere to the dress code: skirts and scarves for women, and long sleeves for men and women. In Old Believer churches it is possible to purchase items of Old Believer use, incl. ladders and copper casting.
Travel time and duration of the excursion are approximate
For a group of up to 19 people, a Mercedes Sprinter, Ford Transit or equivalent minibus is provided, preliminary seating arrangements may vary
For a group of more than 19 people, a Mercedes, Man, Neoplan, Setra, Yutong, ShenLong or equivalent bus is provided
The service provider company does not have the ability to influence delays associated with traffic jams, actions and activities of government bodies, including traffic police, road works, as well as any other delays beyond the reasonable control of the company
Please note that in late autumn, winter, early spring, in exceptional cases, due to short daylight hours, visiting some of the objects stated in the program may take place in the dark.
Important! Visit to Old Believer churches in the village. Ustyanovo and the village of Shuvoe occurs when it is possible for the communities of these temples to receive excursion groups. A visit to one of the declared temples is guaranteed.
In Old Believer churches it is possible to purchase items of Old Believer use, incl. ladders and copper casting.
Those who want to plunge into the font of the holy spring in the village of Ryzhevo - take everything you need. The hot tub is well equipped and comfortable, the water temperature is comfortable.
In the Vvedensky Church. In Ryzhevo, it is possible to purchase three-year-old Cahors, made according to traditional church recipes by the abbot, Abbot Feofan.

Actual expenses of the seller when canceling an ordered and confirmed service at the initiative of the customer::

more than 7 business days before the service provision date corresponds to the seller’s operating expenses
within a period of 7 to 5 working days before the date of provision, in general, according to the supplier’s penalties under the service agreement, it is 20% of the cost of the ordered service
within a period of 5 to 3 working days before the date of provision, in general, according to the supplier’s penalties under the service agreement, it is 40% of the cost of the ordered service
in less than 3 working days before the date of provision, in general, according to the supplier’s penalties under the service agreement, it is 100% of the cost of the ordered service

Note The Seller's actual expenses shown do not apply to cancellation of orders for groups of 6 people or more (the total number of canceled seats is taken into account, even if they were made on different orders). Attention! Special conditions cancellations for all New Year tours with arrivals from December 29 to January 10 and for all Maslenitsa week tours. And also for all tours that take place in holidays and are combined with other weekends such as: May holidays, holidays on February 23 and March 8, November, June holidays.

Pereslavl

Description

Excursions included in the tour program

· Goritsky Monastery;
· Fedorovsky Monastery;
· Holy Trinity Danilov Monastery;
· Nikitsky Monastery;
· St. Nicholas Monastery

Attention!

The excursion involves visiting existing temples. It is advisable for ladies to wear skirts and have scarves with them.

Tour program

In terms of the number of monasteries and museums per unit area, Pereslavl-Zalessky has no equal. But, most importantly, the charm of provincial beauty has been preserved here: ancient city ramparts, one of the oldest monasteries in Rus' and entire blocks of old historical buildings. For the first time, our excursion offers you to get acquainted with all the monasteries of Pereslavl and enjoy the architecture and rich historical heritage of the ancient city. Christian monasteries near the famous Lake Pleshcheevo are considered one of the most ancient Russian monasteries. One of them appeared at the beginning of the 11th century, and the other was built on an old pagan temple. Nowadays, in Pereslavl-Zalessky you can visit five monasteries.
Goritsky Monastery. Squat defensive walls and towers make the monastery look like a massive fortress. In addition, the ancient monastery stands on a hill and is visible from everywhere. The exact date of foundation of the monastery remains unknown. However, written evidence has been preserved that a Christian monastery was built on the site of a pagan sanctuary, and this happened no later than the 14th century.
To this day, buildings built in the 16th-17th centuries have been preserved in the monastery complex. These are the Holy Gates with the Church of St. Nicholas towering above them, the elegant Travel Gates in the eastern part of the wall, and, of course, the majestic Assumption Cathedral, with its five domes reaching straight to the sky.
Museum-reserve, located in the monastery, can rightfully be considered one of the largest and richest museum collections in the country. However, a decision was made to restore a functioning Orthodox monastery on the monastery territory.

Fedorovsky Monastery. The history of the monastery, dedicated to Fyodor Stratelates, dates back more than seven centuries. It was founded at the beginning of the 14th century as monastery. And since the 17th century it has been active convent, where 20 nuns live today.
The Fedorov monastery was destined for a special fate. She was always patronized by Russian sovereigns: first the Rurikovichs, and then the Romanovs. Tsar Peter I brought European looms here, and the nuns became famous as skilled craftswomen in making church vestments. And the best gold seamstresses in the city worked in this monastery. Nowadays, the central place in the monastery complex is occupied by majestic Feodorovsky Cathedral, built in the middle of the 16th century. Stands next to him Church of the Presentation of the Virgin Mary into the Temple (early 18th century). And in the south of the monastery territory there is a temple of the Kazan Icon Mother of God(XVIII century).

Holy Trinity Danilov Monastery. More than 500 years ago, the wandering monk Daniel appeared in an ancient Russian city. He lived in the Nikitsky and Goritsky monasteries, and gradually went from a simple monk to an archimandrite. Daniel's special concern was to bury the dead wanderers, homeless and beggars according to Christian customs. Thanks to his efforts, early XVI century, a new monastery appeared in Pereslavl. A hundred years later, when Russia was experiencing devastating Troubled times, the monastery was badly damaged. The Polish-Lithuanian troops advancing on the city burned most of the monastery buildings, and killed the peasants who worked for this monastery. However, until the end of the 17th century, the monastery was not only restored, but was also rebuilt in stone. Some of those first stone buildings survive to this day. This is in The majestic Trinity Cathedral, built by Rostov masters. Inside it you can see wall paintings made by Kostroma and Yaroslavl isographers in the 1660s. On the eastern side of the cathedral stands the All Saints Church, which appeared in the monastery in the 1680s. And in the southeast of the monastery stands the amazingly beautiful Church of the Praise of the Mother of God, erected at the very end of the 17th century.

Nikitsky Monastery. The most ancient monastery near the legendary Lake Pleshcheevo was founded at the very beginning of the 11th century. This monastery was among the very first Christian buildings erected by decree of Prince Boris of Rostov. In those days, the purpose of the monastery was one thing - to convert the pagans living on the shore of the lake to the Christian faith as much as possible. The monastery was dedicated in honor of one of the most revered saints by believers - the Great Martyr Nikita. Often in history, some events overlap with others. It is curious that in the 12th century there lived at the monastery an unusual healer and holy fool - Nikita Stylite. Today at ancient monastery can be seen beautiful, monumental Nikitsky Cathedral, built during the time of Tsar Ivan IV the Terrible. A slender tented bell tower rises above the entire territory. The monastery also preserves the temple where the young Tsar Peter I stayed during his first visits to Lake Pleshcheyevo. This is the Church of the Annunciation. The entire complex of monastery buildings is surrounded by white stone walls. It is enough to look at their towers and loopholes to understand how powerful the fortification created around the monastery was. Tsar Ivan IV the Terrible took part in the construction of these walls. By his order, the stones were fastened with a special mortar, and the base of the walls was laid out with massive boulders.
Today, 15 inhabitants live inside the monastery. Many pilgrims come to the famous healing spring of St. Nikita, which is located about 1 km from the monastery walls.

Nikolsky Monastery. Saint Nicholas is one of the most revered Orthodox saints. Therefore, it is not surprising that at the beginning of the 14th century a monastery dedicated to him was built in the city. The founder of the monastery is Dmitry Prilutsky. In the first centuries of its existence, the new monastery faced great trials. Not once was it completely plundered and burned by the Khan's raids and military detachments of False Dmitry. And in the 60s of the 17th century, the monastery territory was completely empty after a plague epidemic, from which 9/10 of all residents of the city died. IN late XIX century, the men's monastery was converted into a convent by decision of the church authorities. The nuns quickly got down to business, managed to repair old buildings and erected several new buildings. However, the monastery was badly damaged during active struggle Soviet power with religion. Nowadays, the ancient monastery is being actively revived and is open to both pilgrims and tourists.

The most famous monasteries of Greece and Russia are located on the islands. Have you not visited Solovki and Valaam or Mount Athos yet? We invite you to visit the courtyards of these monasteries in Moscow and thereby experience the history and spiritual power of the great Orthodox monasteries.

The Valaam archipelago is a special place where churches and monasteries silently tell about the hidden exploits of the ascetics of the Russian Orthodox spirit, and every tree, every bush, grown in harsh northern conditions by the labor of many generations of monks, reminds of heaven and gardens of paradise. According to legend, the Apostle Andrew the First-Called, the enlightener of the Scythians and Slavs, laid the foundation Christian faith on Valaam. Northern Athos, the “Honest and Great Lavra”, was the name given to this ancient monastic monastery, founded in the 10th century. Saints Sergius and Herman, Valaam wonderworkers. More than once the Valaam Monastery was subjected to devastation and devastation, more than once its monks fell under the edge of the sword, more than once its holy churches burned. But each time, recovering from the blows, he rose and flourished. Valaam monastery became a treasury of monastic experience, which its inhabitants, the holy founders of new Russian monasteries, carried not only to the northern regions, but throughout Russia. In Moscow, on Tverskaya-Yamskaya Street, the complex of the courtyard of the Valaam Monastery, built in 1901, has been preserved. Today, there are two churches in the courtyard: the upper one - in honor of the saint. Sergius and Herman, and the lower one - in honor of the holy noble prince Alexander Nevsky. In the upper church there is the Valaam Icon of the Mother of God (list), the icon of the Venerables Sergius and Herman, the icon of Righteous Anna, the mother of the Most Holy Theotokos, painted on Holy Mount Athos, and other shrines. In the lower church there is an icon of the Blessed Virgin Mary. book Alexander Nevsky with a particle of relics.

Solovetsky Monastery is a famous monastery located on the Solovetsky Islands in the White Sea. It arose in the 1420-1430s, rebuilt in stone by the labors of St. Philip (Kolycheva), a fortress monastery that played a vital role in the life of the Pomeranian North and all of Russia. A special page in the history of the monastery is its stand for the old faith in 1669-1676. In 1992, the complex of monuments of the Solovetsky Museum-Reserve was included in the UNESCO World Heritage List, and in 1995 - in the State Code of Especially Valuable Objects of Cultural Heritage of Nations Russian Federation. It is known that in the XVI - XVIII centuries The courtyard of the Solovetsky Monastery in Moscow was located in Kitai-Gorod. In 1992, the ancient Moscow Church of the Nativity of the Mother of God and the Holy Great Martyr George the Victorious in Endov was transferred to the monastery - a wonderful example of 17th century architecture. The main shrine of the temple is the icon of Saints Zosima, Savvaty and Herman, the Solovetsky wonderworkers, with particles of their relics. Icons of God are especially revered. Mothers “Sovereign” and “Burning Bush”. A special place on the territory of the courtyard is occupied by the Poklonny Cross, erected in memory of those who languished and died in the Solovetsky Special Purpose Camp.

Holy Mount Athos is the world's largest center of Orthodox monasticism, located in Greece on the Aion Oros peninsula. Currently, the Holy Mountain consists of 20 monasteries, including the Russian St. Panteleimon Monastery. For all my long history Athos played the most important role as the center of monastic life for all Eastern Christianity and is still a unique place where the continuity of monastic work has not been interrupted. Russian Athos begins in Moscow at the Athos Compound, in Gonchary. The central building of the courtyard of the St. Panteleimon Monastery is the Church of St. Nikita the Martyr behind the Yauza. The temple, built on a high hill in 1595 on the foundation of an older structure, is one of the oldest surviving temples in Moscow. In 1992, the Church of Nikita the Martyr was transferred to the Compound of the Russian St. Panteleimon Monastery. By 2000, a fraternal building with the Church of All Athonite Saints was built, reminiscent of a corner of Orthodox Greece. Among the shrines of the courtyard are icons painted by the best icon painters of the Holy Mountain, among them the icon of the great martyr and healer Panteleimon with a particle of his relics.

It is no coincidence that the Istra land is called holy - a lot of significant historical stories are associated with these places, leaving a memory in the surviving temples, estates and monastery buildings, of which a special place is occupied by New Jerusalem with its unique shrines and the Korsun-Toropetsk icon located in the Alexander Temple Nevsky on Prince Lake.
New Jerusalem Monastery was founded by Patriarch Nikon in the middle of the 17th century. as the center of the Russian Palestine he created, spread out on the banks of the Istra River, renamed Jordan. In the XVIII - XIX centuries. the monastery becomes one of the most revered in Central Russia. Patriarch Nikon is a special figure. Another historical figure who left such a contradictory and ambiguous mark on Russian church history until the 20th century. No. The architectural ensemble of the New Jerusalem Monastery is included in the golden fund of Russian architecture, representing a striking example of the Russian Baroque style.
The surrounding area of Istra and the New Jerusalem Monastery is replete with attractions. Not all of them are widely known, but together, in harmony with surrounding nature, create a unique landscape of “Russian Palestine”.
Near the southern borders of the village of Knyazhye Ozero there is an active Orthodox church Church of the Holy Blessed Prince Alexander Nevsky. Story Korsun Icon of the Mother of God goes back to hoary antiquity. According to legend, it was written by the Evangelist Luke and blessed by the Most Holy Theotokos herself. This icon was brought to Rus' at the end of the 12th century by Saint Euphrosyne of Polotsk and became famous for the miraculous healings she gave through her. By the grace of God, the original of the holy image did not share the fate of many shrines lost to Russia in the last century, but was preserved and is now in the Alexander Nevsky Church on Prince Lake, where numerous pilgrimages are made to it.
Darna village has a centuries-old history. It is known that back in the 15th century it belonged to the Pushkin family; later its owners were the boyars Polevs, Shakhovskys, Streshnevs, Chaadaevs. In 1658, Darna was bought by Patriarch RNikon, who assigned the village to the New Jerusalem Monastery. In 1686, a wooden church was built here in the name of the Exaltation of the Honorable Cross of the Lord. In 1895 a large three-altar church in the name of the Exaltation of Chestnago Life-giving Cross The Lord's. The design of the church was carried out free of charge by the architect S.V. Sherwood and is a striking example of neo-Russian style architecture.
The main pride of Pavlovskaya Sloboda is the five-domed Annunciation Church(1662) with a restored three-tier hipped bell tower. The temple was built in the courtyard of the “uncle” of Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich Boris Morozov and was connected by passages to his chambers. Over time, the mansions fell into disrepair and were demolished, but the church, standing on a hill near the shore of Istra, offered a wonderful view.
Borisoglebsky Anosin Convent (Anosin Monastery)- an active stauropegial convent in the village of Anosino. Named in honor of the Russian princes and holy passion-bearers Boris and Gleb, in memory of the founder’s late husband, Prince Boris Ivanovich Meshchersky. Founded on June 25, 1823 by Princess Avdotya Meshcherskaya, the aunt of the poet Fyodor Tyutchev. Before the revolution, he became famous for the height of the spiritual life of the nuns; it was called women's Optina. Currently beautifully restored.

And his family. They went about their business, and I decided to start getting to know each other right away from the Intercession Cathedral. I knew that I needed to come in long sleeves, behave as quietly and inconspicuously as possible, not take photographs, and confidently, with a bag on my shoulder, I walked inside the main cathedral church of the Rogozh Old Believer community. Having entered, he immediately carefully moved to the right and began to quietly sneak along the wall, very intensively turning his head to the sides - the inside of the cathedral is simply stunning. Before I had time to feel completely out of place, I was picked up by my grandmother with the question “Are you an Old Believer?” and escorted to the vestibule. My grandmother talked to me for quite a long time and politely, explained all the subtleties and gave me a brochure published there especially for such newcomers. I was able to see the amazing decoration of the cathedral, even if only with a glimpse. I visited Rogozhka again after that, but gave up the thought of going inside.

But just recently, thanks to the essentially unique excursion Under the Sign of the Old Faith from the Travel Store, I was able to visit inside the Intercession Cathedral and inside the Cathedral of the Nativity of Christ and in many interesting places in the Transfiguration Cemetery complex. Moreover, in addition to our wonderful guide Valery Strakhov, we were met by “their” guides both in Rogozhskaya Sloboda and in the Preobrazhenskaya Old Believer community - as they say, information from primary sources.

Of course, any historical excursion is an immersion in the atmosphere of the past, when the streets of a big city suddenly look completely different and time flows differently. Many people have probably experienced this feeling. And these words, routine for such cases, could be transferred to this excursion, but contact with the world of Old Believers, even only on the territory of Moscow, is a kind of transition to another dimension, albeit temporarily. And here, of course, the feeling of immersion in deep antiquity is especially clear, because the Old Believers were the first collectors and keepers of Russian antiquities: manuscripts, ancient icon painting, the famous “hook singing”.

Despite the fact that I have read something about the Old Believers, fortunately there is information, including from the Old Believers themselves, a mess still periodically forms in my head, because there is a lot of information, which is worth not getting confused in various Old Believer movements. It was all the more valuable to first receive general historical information from “our” guide Valery Strakhov and then learn in more detail about all the subtleties from the Old Believers themselves.

This post has one important feature - the atmosphere inside Old Believer churches is completely special and the interior decoration is truly impressive, this is some completely different world and, as is probably already clear, there will not be a single photograph inside the temples. No matter how interesting it would be. There is only one piece of advice - see it with your own eyes, fortunately there are opportunities.

By the way, the bus on the excursion was full, there were a lot of questions for our Old Believers guides, there were obviously no random people here, everyone was truly interested in the subject. I have not seen a single attempt to film in any way, at least for something, where we were asked not to film, and the Old Believers greeted us very friendly, despite all the closedness attributed to them by rumor. Adequate attitude towards adequate people.

The excursion began in Rogozhskaya Sloboda.

Rogozhskaya Sloboda was finally formed as a complete architectural ensemble by 1860-80. In 2005, Rogozhskaya Sloboda celebrates the 100th anniversary of the unsealing of the altars of Rogozh churches.

1. Intercession Cathedral - the main one cathedral Rogozhskaya Old Believer community. Built in 1790-1792 by the outstanding Russian architect Matvey Fedorovich Kazakov in the classicism style.

4. Church-bell tower of the Resurrection of Christ, I think it was noticed more than once by those traveling along the Third Transport Ring. The bell tower was erected in 1906-1913 in memory of the opening of the altars of the churches of the Rogozhsky cemetery by the architect F. I. Gornostaev.

5. The bell tower was erected in two years; it took several more years to finish it

6. By the mid-1930s, almost all Moscow Old Believer churches were closed, but in the Intercession Cathedral, unlike the other churches of the Rogozhskoe cemetery, services did not stop. Here we were lucky enough to go inside and take a close look at everything. The local guide also pointed out the icon by Rublev, I wonder how true this is.

7. Church of St. Nicholas of Myra at the Rogozhskoe cemetery. The church was built in 1776 and originally belonged to the Rogozh Old Believer community. Funeral services for the dead were usually held here. However, in 1854 the church was transferred to fellow believers. (Coreligionists performed divine services according to the old rite, but were hierarchically subordinate to the official church). St. Nicholas Church took on its modern appearance in the “Russian style” after perestroika in 1863-1866. designed by the architect V. N. Karneev at the expense of the merchant N. M. Alyasin. It is much easier to get inside than the neighboring Old Believers; the inside is quite unusual, with many ancient icons.

8. View of the ensemble from the local ponds.

Also on the territory of Rogozhskaya Sloboda we visited the Cathedral of the Nativity of Christ, where the museum is now located - a rare opportunity for non-Old Believers to move so freely in the temple, in which, according to the guide, services are supposed to be held in the future. There are many unique historical exhibits here. In the 70s, by the way, there were warehouses for the Kremlin museums. And, of course, we visited the Rogozhskoe cemetery, where representatives of famous merchant families and Old Believer hierarchies are buried. Until 1934, only Old Believers were buried there. Famous Russian industrialists, manufacturers, merchants Shelaputins, Rakhmanovs, Ryazanovs, Ryabushinskys, Morozovs, Kuznetsovs, Kapyrins, Tryndins and others are buried at the Rogozhskoye cemetery.

On the territory of the cemetery there is a forged chapel-crypt of the Morozovs. 5 generations of the merchant dynasty are buried there, starting with the founder of the dynasty, Savva Timofeevich (1770-1860) and up to his descendants. The last burial is dated 1995.

After that, our path lay in Preobrazhenskoye. If Rogozhskoye was the center of the Old Believers who retained the priesthood, then another famous monument existing in Moscow - the Preobrazhenskoye cemetery - united the “first Russian Protestants” of the Old Believers who were left without the priesthood. Fedoseevtsy, Pomortsy, Filippovtsy - many “accords” (directions) existed before the revolution. But they were all united by one idea: that the Antichrist already reigns in the world. We visited the Preobrazhenskoye Cemetery complex, where, in addition to the necropolis, churches of the main non-popovian movements that have survived to our time have been preserved and operate.

Preobrazhenskoye is a unique historical corner of Moscow, which has become famous since the reign of Alexei Mikhailovich. Since 1771, the history and fame of Preobrazhensky has been associated with the cemetery, which has become an all-Russian center for Bespopovites. The cemetery ensemble is well preserved. Old Believers, especially Bespopovtsy, are known for their closedness from the outside world. We were introduced to Preobrazhensky by the Old Believers themselves, representatives of the Cultural and Pilgrimage Center named after Archpriest Avvakum. During our excursion we had a unique opportunity to visit the Church of the Assumption Holy Mother of God Moscow Pomeranian community and visit the territory of the former Women's Courtyard, which belonged to the historical creators of Preobrazhensky - the Fedoseevites.

Preobrazhenskoe impressed me the most; from a noisy street in the middle of a huge metropolis, you suddenly find yourself in some kind of pre-Petrine times. Here they are already talking about “New Believers” with all their might when it comes to the Russian Orthodox Church, but when it comes to the Old Believer movements, it becomes very difficult to understand this, and the interior decoration of the Church of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary is somehow difficult to reasonably describe in words - I have never seen anything like it .

11. Bell tower of the former St. Nicholas Monastery of Edinoverie

13. Church of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker at the Transfiguration Cemetery. Built in 1780-1784. Architect F.K. Sokolov (possibly based on the design of V.I. Bazhenov). Originally it belonged to the Fedoseev Old Believers, like all the temple buildings of the Preobrazhenskoye Cemetery. In the middle of the 19th century. The southern (male) courtyard of the Preobrazhenskoe cemetery is turned into the St. Nicholas Monastery of Edinoverie, which in the 1920s went to the renovationists. The Renovationist community, in turn, sold the main part of the St. Nicholas Assumption Church to the Pomeranian Old Believers. After the liquidation of renovationism in the 1940s. In the antechamber of the St. Nicholas Assumption Church, a church of the Russian Orthodox Church MP was built.

15. Priest's house

17. Gate Church of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross. Previously it was the gate church of the former St. Nicholas Monastery of Edinoverie.

19. Chapel of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker at the Preobrazhenskoye Cemetery. Built in the Gothic style in 1804 (or 1805) under the direction of architect F.K. Sokolov.

20. The building in the Moscow Art Nouveau style was built in 1912 for the Hospital at the Preobrazhensk Old Believer Community according to the design of the architect L. N. Kekushev, the first and one of the largest masters of the Art Nouveau style in Moscow. In this remarkably preserved architectural monument, alas, they did not find anything better than to locate a tuberculosis dispensary.

21. Walls of the former St. Nicholas Monastery

22. Cathedral Old Believer Church of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross. It was built on the initiative of the Old Believer merchant I. A. Kovylin (1731–1809) and was built after his death. Among the possible authors of the project are V. I. Bazhenov and M. F. Kazakov. The double-height, single-domed temple is distinguished by the absence of an altar apse. The bell tower of the church is similar in type to the bell tower of the Kirillo-Belozersky Monastery. In Soviet times it was not closed..

The Fedoseevites belong to the Bespopovites, i.e. Old Believers who deny the existence in our days of a grace-filled church hierarchy that has preserved canonical apostolic succession. Therefore, their churches (strictly speaking, these are chapels) do not have altars, since, from the point of view of the Bespopovites, there is no one else to serve the liturgy. Unlike the Pomeranians, the Fedoseevites retained the original bespopovsky opinion, which took shape along with the lack of priests itself, that since there is no priesthood, then there is no one to officiate marriages. Therefore, they preach celibacy for their teachers and clergy. Fedoseevites instruct those in a civil (unmarried) marriage not to be baptized, not to bow and not to venerate icons during common prayer.

23. There is an apiary on the territory of the former women's yard. This is in the middle of a huge metropolis.

25. Eastern (male) building with the Church of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary, St. John the Theologian and St. Nicholas the Wonderworker. Built in 1805. Here are the Cultural and Pilgrimage Center named after. Archpriest Avvakum and the Church Shop of the Moscow Transfiguration Old Believer Monastery

27. And in the Southern (women’s) building with the Church of the All-Merciful Savior there is still a police battalion.

Here I mostly went over the top, but in fact there are a lot of different interesting materials on this topic. My task was to tell you that with the help of an organized excursion it is possible to lift the veil of secrecy about this most interesting part of our history and our present. You can do this yourself, but it will be more difficult and less informative, and the Old Believers, as it turns out, are quite open to communication if you respect those you are coming to visit, and you need to understand that this is just a visit.