Saint Petersburg Guide

SAVIOR ON THE BLOOD CATHEDRAL

The church "Savior on the Spilled Blood" or "Resurrection of Christ" was built in 1883-1907 on the spot where a terrorist from the revolutionary organization People's Will mortally wounded Tsar Alexander II on March 1, 1881, by tossing a bomb at his feet. His son, Alexander III, began construction of the memorial church in 1883 and it was completed in 1907 during the reign of Nicholas II. The church was built by the architect Parland in so-called "Russian style", in the spirit of 16th-17th century Russian architecture It was supposed to resemble the St. Basil's cathedral in Moscow.

Most of the money for the church was donated by the royal family and thousands of private investors. Both inside and outside the church is decorated with unique mosaics whose surface was left unpolished so that they could better reflect sunlight. In the Soviet days, communist party leaders considered demolishing it.

The inside of the church has just reopened after 27 years of restoration (and 90 years after its first opening in 1907) although the restorantion works are still going on. Inside, as well as the enshrined exact spot where Alexander was assassinated is a mind-boggling seven thousand seven thousand square meters of mosaics.

• Open: Fri-Tues 11.00 a.m. to 6.00 p.m.
• Location: 2a Nab. Kanala Griboyedova

SIGHTS OF SAINT PETERSBURG
Alexander Nevsky Lavra Amber Room Cruiser Aurora Dostoevsky Museum Gatchina Hermitage House of Peter Great Isaak Cathedral Kazan Cathedral Kunstkamera Nabokov Museum Nevsky Prospect Novgorod Oranienbaum Peter and Paul Fortress Pavlovsk Peterhof Pushkin Museum Russian Museum Savior on the Blood Cathedral Tsarskoye Selo Vodka Museum Vyborg Yusupuv Palace