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Kyiv (Kiev) - THE PECHERSK LAVRA MONASTERY, Ukraine

Pawel Jaworski

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The Pechersk Lavra Monastery (Pechersk stands for pechery, that is caves which are to be found in its territory and which early monks used to live in, and Lavra is an honorific title given to a monastery of extra-size and religious importance) came into being in the eleventh century and for nine centuries its territory was expanding with new buildings being added to it through the centuries. The architectural complex of the Monastery the way it looks today is truly grandiose. On a sunny day one is almost dazzled by the reflections from the innumerable golden domes above churches and belfries. Most of the buildings in the Monastery date from the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries and are excellent examples of Ukrainian Baroque style in architecture and there is only one church in the Monastery that has been preserved from the twelfth century with very few architectural changes introduced since then. The church sits above the main entrance gate of the Monastery and is consequently called Nadvratna the one above the gate. The full name of the church is Troitska Nadvratna Tserkva The Holy Trinity Church above the Gate. It is almost a miracle it has survived as the Monastery itself was throughout its history the object of so many enemy attacks, of devastating fires and of other crippling misfortunes.