Travel to Russia with Your Personal Guide & Driver in
Moscow Arthur Lookyanov
Travel to Russia with your Private Guide and Professional Driver

White church with black domes

White church with black domes

The remarkable estate in Boslhie Vyazemy was acquired by the most powerful boyar in Muscovy (Moscow Region; the principality in those time), Boris Godunov, in the late 16th century. On the place of this splendid royal estate only the beautiful Church of the Trinity built in the 1590s and later renamed the Transfiguration has survived.

Royal churches of this antiquity are rare in the Moscow Region. The massive cube rises high from the broad terrace and is crowned by picturesque gables, round drums and seven hemispherical domes (predeccession of onion domes) topped by tall gold crosses. It is built of white limestone up to the double cornice and then of brick. The three main facades are devided into three bays articulated by pilasters, lopatki, and surmounted by round gables, zakomary, in the manner of the Archangel Cathedral in the Kremlin. The two side chapels that close off the eastern end of the open terrace display three rows of decorative gables, kokoshniki.

As a child the great poet, Alexander Pushkin visited his grandmother's eastate every summer at nearby Zakharovo (on the way to Zvenigorod) and attended church at Bolshie Vayzemy. The grave of his little brother, Nokolai, who died in the age of seven, can still be seen behind the apse. Perhaps Pushkin's childhood memories of Bolshie Vayzemy are reflected in his fine drama "Boris Godunov".

I hope that you liked this picture and information about this place, which I took from the excellent book "Discovering the Moscow Countryside" written by Kathleen Berton Murrell.

Oh, by the way, here is interesting info about the colors of the domes on Orhotodox churches:
- Golden dome - devoted to Christ the Saviour;
- Blue dome - devoted to Virgin Mary (Mother God);
- Green dome - means "submission";
- Black dome - means "survitude";
- Silver dome - means "not finished yet, the color was not specified"

With BEST Regards,
Arthur Lookianov
Personal Guide & Driver in Moscow
Nov 11th, 2006

Random customer's Responses & Recommendations.
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Dino and Irma Pavlis
Dino and Irma Pavlis
From: Chicago, Illinois
Date: 2003-11-08 16:28:51
How lucky we were to find Arthur's website! We just adopted two beautiful Russian children in November of 2003. I really don't know how we would have made it in Moscow without Arthur. It was like having a friend guide you. He brought us to the Filatov Clinic and secured us an examination for the children--even though we were late and had no appointment. He placed us in the right line outside the American Embassy and escorted us to McDonalds with the children while we were waiting for our final appointment. I was sick and he took me to the pharmacy for some antibiotics. We were concerned about spending too much eating out so he pushed the cart for us at a huge and wonderful Russian supermarket. And to top it off, he gave us a traffic-free early morning last minute run through Moscow that was breathtaking. Moreover, Arthur is a safe and intelligent driver--a unique characteristic, you will see, for a Russian motorist. And all this at very reasonable rates.
It was very important for us too to feel comfortable with the person we would be spending hours with and intrusting the details of such an important part of our lives--and I guess we lucked out. Arthur is a very charming guy--a cross between Robert Redford and Michael J. Fox, in a Russian style. And best of all, he is good with children.
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