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Welcome to Velikiy Novgorod.

Velikiy Novgorod - one of the most ancient cities of Russia located in its North-West, near the site where the Volkhov river takes its waters from Lake Ilmen, emerged as a political center of Slavic and Fino-Ugric tribes in the mid-9th century, while as a town it was formed in the middle of the 10th century.

Icons gallery

Icon Gallery You cannot understand the Russian soul without knowing the Russian icon. In old Russia the icon was the commonest form of figurative art. It was a visual demonstration of faith in love and charity, the triumph of justice and the victory of Good over Evil. The icon was an ever - present companion - at home, in church, on journeys and at war. Novgorod Icon Gallery will help you to discover the complex and many-sided world of the old Russians icon, and to recognise the links between Russia's past and her present.

Novgorodian Icon-Painting

Novgorodian Icon-Painting Novgorodian easel - painting has a long and complex history. Its origins go back to the eleventh century. Its first flourishing was in the twelfth - thirteenth centuries, and the second, the greatest, in the late fourteenth and throughout the fifteenth centuries.

Afterwards, the art gradually began to decline, and though individual icons of excellent quality continued to be produced on Novgorodian soil, they nevertheless fell short of the earlier work.This is understandable, for the loss of Novgorod's independence and privilegesled to the gradual disappearance of the factors which had brought about the great flourishing of its art.

Novgorod Architecture

The focal point of the city is the Detinets, or the Kremlin. It was mentioned first in the chronicles in the entry for 1044. In that year, ramparts with traditional wooden framework constructions were built on the site of an older fortification. The first stone structures appeared in 1302. According to Novgorodian chronicles, the towers and walls of the citadel underwent repeated repairs, and in 1484-90, during the all-round renovation of the fortress they were replaced with brick ones, erected in keeping with the traditions of Moscow architecture.

Russian Orthodox Hymnody

Orthodox hymnody is a part of Russian musical culture. It is a specific world, the aim of which is the appeal to God and the service of Him; contrary to secular music, which satisfies the aesthetic needs of people.