Saint Paraskevi church is particularly known for its remarkable iconostasis consisting of more than seventy individual fragments. This church is a true masterpiece of Ukrainian part of the 16th-17th centuries. Painters whose names are unknown managed to achieve an intriguing combination of vivid national co louring coupled with western influence. In Lviv one often comes [...]]]>

Saint Paraskevi church is particularly known for its remarkable iconostasis consisting of more than seventy individual fragments. This church is a true masterpiece of Ukrainian part of the 16th-17th centuries. Painters whose names are unknown managed to achieve an intriguing combination of vivid national co louring coupled with western influence. In Lviv one often comes across traditional iconography and compositional methods of Ukrainian painting influenced by the North Italian Renaissance and the German-Flemish school of painting. The gold-plated wooden iconostasis will astonish you with its elaborate fretwork and tracery.

Although Saint Paraskevi church is small in size, it is an imposing structure. Thick, roughly hewn walls and small windows speaks of times when the church was not only a spiritual center but also a fortress, a place of refuge from the enemy.
A close survey of the church’s architectural and constructive features reveals elements of Romanesque, Gothic, Baroque styles and also of the late Renaissance period. Its clearly defined, unbroken composition, light-flooded majestic interior contribute much to its value as a monument of Lviv architecture of the 17th century which continued and developed the Ukrainian building traditions and those of local architecture in particular.

Continuing our Lvovs’ tour along the “Podzamche” we comes to the last  church of the district – the Church of Saint Paraskevi Pjatnisa (Tserkov Svyatoi Praskovii or Pyatnitskaya Tserkov, No. 63, St. Bogdan Khmelnitsky). In addition to “Paraskevi” there are many other variations of this Greek female name – such as Pascha, Petka, Paraskeva, Praskovia, [...]]]>

Continuing our Lvovs’ tour along the “Podzamche” we comes to the last  church of the district – the Church of Saint Paraskevi Pjatnisa (Tserkov Svyatoi Praskovii or Pyatnitskaya Tserkov, No. 63, St. Bogdan Khmelnitsky). In addition to “Paraskevi” there are many other variations of this Greek female name – such as Pascha, Petka, Paraskeva, Praskovia, Praskovie, Pyatnitsa, Pyetka, Paraskevoula and Voula.
In the 13th century this was the site of a church made of quarry-stone that communicated by means of a subterranean passage with Prince’s Hill. It was a highly fortified edifice on the boundary of Okolny Gorod. The Church of Saint Paraskeva Pjatnisa was built on the foundations of the preceding church;  it was completed between 1643 and 1645. Vasily Lupul, a Moldavian nobleman, contributed to its construction and thus earned a place for Moldavian rulers who were later buried on the premises. The southern wall of the church is decorated with their coat of arms – the sun, the moon and a crown.

In the 17th century the interior and outer walls of the church were decorated with frescoes. The paintings inside, made at the end of the 18th century, are the work of Lvov painter Luka Dolinsky. Fragments of an old frieze depicting heads of angels and garlands of fruits have been preserved on the extenor of the tower.

Church of Saint Mary Magdalene (Kostyol Marii Snezhnoi) stands on a small hill facing the start of Bogdan Khmelnitsky Street.

According to certain investigators the Church of Saint Mary was rebuilt from an ancient Russian church. But there is no doubt that at the close of the 13th century this was a Catholic church and the [...]]]>

Church of Saint Mary Magdalene (Kostyol Marii Snezhnoi) stands on a small hill facing the start of Bogdan Khmelnitsky Street.

According to certain investigators the Church of Saint Mary was rebuilt from an ancient Russian church. But there is no doubt that at the close of the 13th century this was a Catholic church and the religious centre of the German colony. The plan of the church is typical of West-European ecclesiastic architecture: the somewhat squat form, a definite architectural style and modest decor – all this speaks in favour of the principles and methods of the Romanesque order. We are utterly ignorant of the initial form of the church. It had been often reconstructed in the course of centuries and particularly at the end of the 19th century when architect Yu. Zakharievich remodelled the building in pseudo-Romanesque style. This is especially notable in the murals of the interior and in the exterior ornament of the chancel.

Coming down the High Castle by Maxim Krivonos Street (Ulitsa Maxima Krivonosa) and turning rightyou gets into ancient part of the town called Podzamche meaning “under the castle.” Podzamche main street – the former Volhynski Szlach – bears the name of Bogdan Khmelnitsky (Ulitsa Bogdana Khmelnitskogo). This used to be the site of the old Okolny [...]]]>

Coming down the High Castle by Maxim Krivonos Street (Ulitsa Maxima Krivonosa) and turning rightyou gets into ancient part of the town called Podzamche meaning “under the castle.”
Podzamche main street – the former Volhynski Szlach – bears the name of Bogdan Khmelnitsky (Ulitsa Bogdana Khmelnitskogo). This used to be the site of the old Okolny Gorod. Podzamche was mostly inhabited by Ukrainians: the urban poor, petty tradesmen, artisans, apprentices. Way back in the 13th-14th centuries in the time of Daniil Galitsky and his successors this was one of the busiest spots of Lvov. Throughout the ages the place retained its singular character. Most of the inhabitants wore Ukrainian national dress, adhered to the Orthodox Church, kept their customs and traditions, and spoke their native tongue. The entire district was highly reminiscent of ancient Lvov, and its dwellers cherished everything that was connected with the olden times. To a certain extent this has accounted for the style of architectural monuments in this part of Lvov.

Later today I will write about two churches at Podzamche – Church of Saint Mary and Church of Saint John the Baptist.