We are starting a small series of issues about the Church-Museum of St. Nicholas in Tolmachi at the State Tretyakov Gallery. About the history of this unique church, its interior decoration and the presence of the Vladimir Icon in it Holy Mother of God say the rector of the church, Archpriest Nikolai Sokolov, and the head of the department ancient Russian art State Tretyakov Gallery Natalia Nikolaevna Sheredega.
– To my left you see the domes of the Church of St. Nicholas in Tolmachi, and we are now in its bell tower. And our today’s episode of the program “Keepers of Memory” opens a short series of stories about this temple.
Archpriest Nikolai Sokolov, rector of the Church of St. Nicholas in Tolmachi at the State Tretyakov Gallery:
– Dear brothers and sisters, all TV viewers who are watching our program today! We are located in a unique temple, which is located almost in the very center of our capital, Moscow. The name of this church is the Church of St. Nicholas in Tolmachi at the Tretyakov Gallery. It has been in existence for almost three and a half centuries.
It was first mentioned in 1625, but was built somewhat earlier. At first the building was wooden, then stone, then rebuilt. And today the temple stands before us after all the incidents associated with the events of 1917 and later. Now he is in all his glory, as Pavel Mikhailovich Tretyakov saw him.
In 1856, the Tretyakov family acquired an estate next to this church, and it became a parish church. Pavel Tretyakov, his brother, mother and close friends visited this temple constantly. There is a place marked in the church where Pavel Mikhailovich was during the service. The temple was decorated and visited by the first hierarchs of the Russian Orthodox Church.
Saint Philaret of Moscow (Drozdov), who is now canonized, paid a lot of attention to the interior of the temple and its decoration. He served in this temple, consecrated the thrones, and paintings and decorations were made according to his sketches. The Church of St. Nicholas in Tolmachi today will be the same as it was in late XIX-beginning of the 20th century. But if we come here, we will see that not everything here is as it was, but there is something completely new.
Since 1992, the temple has received the status of the first operating temple-museum in Russia. This is both a temple of the Orthodox Church and a museum adjacent to the Tretyakov Gallery. As soon as communication was established here, a certain climate was created, an alarm system and fire extinguishing devices were installed, then it became possible to bring all possible icons here.
Some of them were in the temple even before it closed. And some are completely new icons, but they appeared here in the original interior of the temple for which they were painted. These are wall iconostases, as well as the second, third, fourth and fifth tiers of the central iconostasis. And today the church keeps many icons, starting from the 12th - 13th centuries and ending with some modern images of those saints who became famous in the 20th century as servants of this temple.
This is Father Ilya Chetverukhin, who was the last rector before the closure of the Church of St. Nicholas in Tolmachi, this is the elder, Father Alexy Zosimovsky, who was a deacon in this temple for 28 years, and then the Lord judged him before the miraculous icon of Vladimir Mother of God draw lots for the service of His Holiness Patriarch Tikhon. And also the martyr Nikolai Rein, who also served in this church.
I have now mentioned the great shrine of Russia - the Vladimir Icon of the Mother of God. Nothing happens in the world and life by chance. Elder Alexy Zosimovsky, while still a deacon here with the name Fedor, greatly revered this icon. After the death of his wife, he became a monk with the name Alexy, was ordained a hieromonk, and from this church was sent to serve in the Moscow Kremlin, where, as he writes in his memoirs, he prayed many times and almost daily before miraculously Vladimirsky.
What kind of prayers were these? What did this inspired old man pray for? We can only guess. But decades later, the icon of the Vladimir Mother of God ends up in the Tretyakov Gallery and remains there throughout the troubled seventy years.
And after the completion of the reconstruction of the temple in fact high level His Holiness Patriarch and the President of Russia decided that the icon would be in active temple. They didn’t yet know where exactly to place it, and there were various options: the Kremlin, or the Cathedral of Christ the Savior, which was just beginning to be built, or some other Moscow temple.
After consultation and difficult debates, it was decided that the Vladimir Icon of the Mother of God remains in the Tretyakov Gallery. But not just in the hall, but in a functioning temple-museum. And today you and I are in this temple, where the central image is miraculous icon Mother of God "Vladimir", which has been kept here since 1999. I repeat, this happened when the renovation was completely completed, the iconostasis and icon case were made, which also underwent difficult path, when everything necessary was prepared to preserve this icon.
There were three or four options for different icon cases. And, thanks to the management of the polymetallic plant, which was then headed by Valery Viktorovich Kryukov, this completely unique icon case was created, which simultaneously stores Vladimirskaya, and complies with the necessary parameters of humidity, temperature, and is independent of the general energy supply. He can be without public electricity for several days. This, of course, is a unique product that allows us today to see the Vladimir Icon of the Mother of God in all its wondrous beauty. Because today we see it from all sides: both from the front and from the back, surrounded by a host of icons that are in the temple. Since 1999, prayers have been continuously performed in front of her.
The temple is active, therefore, in agreement with the gallery management, all the necessary services that are required according to the charter of the Church take place here. And, from noon until evening, the temple operates as a hall of the Tretyakov Gallery. The temple-museum is open every day except Monday, and thousands of people from all over Orthodox world(from Russia and abroad) come to pray in front of the wondrous Vladimir image.
Sheredega Natalia Nikolaevna, head of the department of ancient Russian art of the State Tretyakov Gallery:
– This is the temple with which the fate of Zamoskvorechye is connected, and the fate of Pavel Mikhailovich Tretyakov, the founder of the Tretyakov Gallery, and our entire museum, and very many shrines of our fatherland, including those collected here from looted and ruined churches and, finally, that became accessible not only as museum exhibits, but also as, first of all, objects of the life of an Orthodox Christian.
Our temple is located in Tolmachi. This is Tolmachevskaya Sloboda, next to Kadashevskaya Sloboda. Here, from ancient times, from the end of the 17th century, there was a temple of the descent of the Holy Spirit, which had a chapel of St. Nicholas. The building was rebuilt in the 17th century and then underwent changes. The main constructive system in which we now find ourselves has already taken shape in mid-19th century century.
I want to remind you that many of the religious objects and works of art that are now in front of us came here from the most ancient temple, on the site of which stands the current Church of St. Nicholas in Tolmachi. First of all, this concerns the iconostasis. It is a composite of icons that were once located in two churches. The five-tiered iconostasis was restored in accordance with tradition.
We see that in the first tier there are icons of St. Nicholas, the Mother of God, the Savior and the descent of the Holy Spirit. They are from the collection of the Tretyakov Gallery, and belonged to the most ancient temple that was on this site. The fact that they were created at the end of the 17th century by the artist Saltanov specifically at the request of the organizers of this temple is evidenced by the inscriptions on the icons.
The top rows of icons were also created by very famous artists, in particular, master Tikhon Filatiev and his team, masters of the late 17th century, who painted these icons for the Church of the Nativity of the Virgin Mary in Polyanka. After her plunder, the images ended up in the Tretyakov Gallery’s collections through the workshops. And these funds in the 30-40s were where we are now. Why?
In 1929, the Church of St. Nicholas in Tolmachi was closed, the domes and bell towers were demolished, and the body of the temple was miraculously preserved only because it housed the Tretyakov Gallery’s collection of ancient Russian art. Therefore, we consider ourselves somewhat responsible for preserving the foundation of the temple and the icons brought here. The iconostasis was restored from them.
I emphasize once again that the temple was closed in 1929, and already in the 80-90s, under Yuri Konstantinovich Korolev (this is the former director of the Tretyakov Gallery, a famous artist), work began on restoring the Church of St. Nicholas as a temple-museum, which is also an active the church in its entirety Orthodox life and a museum. Because for everything that is here (excluding private donations), the curators and restorers of the Tretyakov Gallery are responsible for all these icons, that is, we work together.
We are very lucky. We work with a wonderful rector and a wonderful cast of clergy, we have a wonderful choir of singers and assistants to Father Nicholas, who, in friendship and cooperation with us, carry out the common task of preservation.
– In the next issue we will continue the story about the church-museum of St. Nicholas in Tolmachi at the Tretyakov Gallery.
The Church of St. Nicholas in Tolmachi has the status of a house church at the Tretyakov Gallery. A significant part of its decoration are exhibits from the museum’s collection. These are icons of the main and side iconostases, including “St. Nicholas”, “The Descent of the Holy Spirit on the Apostles”, as well as altar crosses, liturgical utensils (Master “M.O.” Chalice, 1838).
Here, in a specially equipped display case, the greatest Russian shrine and world-famous work of art, the pride of the Gallery’s collection, is stored - the icon “Our Lady of Vladimir” (12th century). Her stay in the Museum-Temple allows her to organically combine the artistic and religious nature of this monument.
The first mention of the wooden “Church of the Great Wonderworker St. Nicholas, and in the limit of Ivan the Baptist, which is beyond the Moscow River in Tolmachi” is contained in the Parish Book of the Patriarchal Order for 1625.
The stone temple was erected in 1697 by the “guest”, a parishioner of the Church of the Resurrection in Kadashi, Longin Dobrynin, and high altar The temple was consecrated in honor of the Descent of the Holy Spirit, and Nikolsky was transferred to the refectory. However, only from 1697 to 1770 the church was called “Soshestvenskaya” in business papers and books, and then it began to be registered again as “Nikolaevskaya”.
In 1770, the Pokrovsky chapel was built in the refectory at the expense of the widow of the merchant of the 1st guild I.M. Demidov.
In 1834, at the request of the parishioners and “in accordance with the thoughts of Metropolitan Philaret,” the refectory was rebuilt according to the design of the architect F.M. Shestakov and a new bell tower was erected.
In 1856, the quadrangle was updated and the main altar was rebuilt. Funds for the renovation of the temple were donated, among others, by Alexandra Danilovna Tretyakova and her sons. One of them, Pavel Mikhailovich, the founder of the art gallery, was a zealous parishioner of the temple.
“In my mind there arises the image of a man who served as an example of a sober, focused life... who combined the possession of external wealth with spiritual poverty. This was manifested in his humble prayer,” this is how Deacon Fyodor Solovyov, who served in the church for 28 years, and later the elder of the Zosimova Hermitage, schema-monk Alexy, recalled P.M. Tretyakov.
The temple was honored with a visit by the First Hierarchs and Hierarchs of the church. In 1924, St. Tikhon, the All-Russian Patriarch, performed a divine service in the church; the lot for patriarchal service was drawn by Elder Alexy Zosimovsky in front of Vladimir icon Our Lady.
The Council of Bishops in August 2000 canonized Elder Alexy Zosimovsky (1846–1928), martyr Nikolai Rein (1892–1937), a former parishioner of the temple. By the decision of the Holy Synod in 2002, Archpriest Ilia Chetverukhin (1886–1932) was canonized as a hieromartyr. the last rector of the temple before its closure in 1929.
Divine services in the temple were resumed in 1993. On September 8, 1996, the main altar of the temple was consecrated by His Holiness Patriarch Alexy II of Moscow and All Rus'.
In 1997, on the occasion of the 300th anniversary of the temple, its restoration was completed. The slender bell tower was re-erected and the five-domed quadrangle was restored. Three iconostases and wall icon cases were recreated, and wall paintings were completely restored.
The Church of St. Nicholas in Tolmachi is a unique temple-museum located in Zamoskvorechye. The great shrine of Russia is kept here - the icon of Our Lady of Vladimir.
Thousands of pilgrims come to the Tolmachev Church every month to venerate this miraculous image.
The Church of St. Nicholas in Tolmachi was built at the beginning of the 17th century. The first written mention dates back to 1625. The church was restored after the fires of 1812, operated continuously until Soviet times and was closed in 1929. Until the 90s, the premises of the rebuilt church were occupied by the services of the Tretyakov Gallery. Divine services in the Church of St. Nicholas in Tolmachi were resumed only in 1993.
The temple is historically represented by a quadrangle of the 17th century with a central altar of the descent of the Holy Spirit on the Apostles and a bell tower with a refectory of the 19th century, including two chapels - Pokrovsky and Nikolsky.
Today the temple has the status of a house church at the State Tretyakov Gallery. All the necessary conditions have been created here for storing unique shrines, which are the spiritual and cultural heritage of our people.
Once a year, on the feast of the Holy Trinity, Andrei Rublev’s “Trinity” icon is brought from the halls of the Tretyakov Gallery to the temple.
The interior of the temple displays more than 150 storage units from the collection of the Tretyakov Gallery.
In the temple-museum, in a specially equipped icon case, the greatest shrine and world-famous work of art is stored - the Vladimir Icon of the Mother of God. Her stay in the Church of St. Nicholas in Tolmachi allows you to organically combine the religious and artistic nature of this monument. Also here are especially revered shrines: the icons of the Mother of God “Iverskaya” and “Quench My Sorrows”, the Dmitrov cross and the reliquary. To preserve religious and historical values, air conditioning systems are installed in the temple premises to maintain a certain temperature and humidity.
During liturgical times, the temple is open to all believers, and at other times it is open as a hall of the Tretyakov Gallery, to which museum visitors come to become familiar with church art, and often return again, but not as a temple of art, but as a temple of God .
However, the parish is not the walls of the temple and its shrine, it is, first of all, a community of believers, led by the clergy of the temple and its rector, Archpriest Nikolai Sokolov.
The temple enjoys special patronage from its former ministers and parishioners, who are now canonized. Among them are known and revered: St. Alexy Zosimovsky, who served in the church while still in the rank of deacon for 28 years, canonized by the Council of Bishops in August 2000; svschmch. Ilya Chetverukhin, the last rector of the temple before its closure in 1929, canonized by the decision of the Holy Synod in 2002; martyr Nikolai Rein, former parishioner of the temple.
The Tolmachev spirit unites people of many professions, social status and life aspirations. All this is facilitated by social activities, mutual assistance, children's Sunday school classes and educational courses for adults “Fundamentals of Orthodoxy”, the work of a library of Orthodox literature, pilgrimage trips, general work on the publication of the temple newspaper “Tolmachevsky leaf” and, of course, the wonderful singing of the choir created by the famous regent - A. A. Puzakov, who was educated in the choir of N.V. Matveeva. Alexey Alexandrovich was awarded the title of Honored Artist of Russia, thus. having received recognition from secular culture
In the Church of St. Nicholas in Tolmachi you can begin the sacraments of Baptism, Wedding, Blessing of Anointing, Confession, and Communion. Pray at a prayer service or memorial service for your loved ones. Talk with a priest about spiritual topics.
During services, you can enter the temple-museum through the first door to the left of the bell tower, in the building of the Tretyakov Gallery. Before climbing the stairs to the temple, you must leave your outerwear in the wardrobe.
Divine services are performed:
| Wednesday | 10:00 prayer service before the miraculous Vladimir Icon of the Mother of God |
| Friday | 17 00 Matins with Akathist |
| Saturday |
|
| Sunday | 9 00 Hours and Divine Liturgy |
| On the days of the Twelfth Feasts |
9 00 Hours and Divine Liturgy |
| On the days of remembrance of great saints and miraculous icons: | 8 30 Matins and Divine Liturgy |
The library is open:
on Sundays - after Divine Liturgy until 14 00
on Saturdays – from 15:30 to 17:00
The temple is also open to gallery visitors every day except Monday.
from 12 00 to 16 00. Entrance through the central entrance of the Tretyakov Gallery.
The first mention of the wooden “Church of the Great Wonderworker St. Nicholas, and in the border of Ivan the Baptist, which is beyond the Moscow River in Tolmachi” is contained in the Parish Book of the Patriarchal Order for the year. “Tolmachi” is a word of Tatar origin; this is the name given to interpreters, who were distinguished from those who can write in foreign language. Tolmachi or Tatar settlement was the name given to the area near the road to the Horde, then at a distance from the rest of Moscow, where translators settled - Tatars who spoke Russian, and then Russian translators.
The stone temple was erected in the year by a “guest”, a parishioner of the Church of the Resurrection in Kadashi, Longin Dobrynin, and the main altar of the temple was consecrated in honor of the Descent of the Holy Spirit, and Nikolsky was moved to the refectory. However, only over the years the church was called “Soshestvenskaya” in business papers and books, and then it began to be registered again as “Nikolaevskaya”.
The church has a library of Orthodox literature, a children's Sunday school, and educational courses for adults “Fundamentals of Orthodoxy.”
Abbots
- Vasily Pavlov (mid-18th century)
- Ioann Vasiliev (September 22, 1770 - 1791)
- Ioann Andreev (May 1791 - 1812)
- Nikolai Yakovlev (1813 - ?)
- Ivanovich Smirnov (1816 - 1828)
- Nikolai Rozanov (1828 - 1855)
- Vasily Nechaev (1855 - 1889)
- Dimitry Kasitsyn (1889 - December 3, 1902)
The wooden Church of St. Nicholas in Tolmatskaya Sloboda has been known since the beginning of the 17th century. In the Parish Book of the Patriarchal Order for 1625 it is called “the church of the great Wonderworker St. Nicholas, and in the chapel Ivan the Baptist, which is beyond the Moscow River in Tolmachi.” This is only the first documentary mention of the temple, but the exact date It’s difficult to name the buildings. It is known that in 1657 she was allocated land for a new cemetery, because there was no longer enough space in the old one. It can be assumed that since the parish was so large, the church appeared long before 1625. The throne of the temple was consecrated in honor of the great representative and patron of Rus' - Nicholas the Wonderworker.
Tatars who made up significant part the population of Tolmachevskaya Sloboda called this saint “Russian God” - there were so many St. Nicholas churches in Moscow. Just listing them would take more than one paragraph. I will only mention the Zamoskvoretsky ones: in Golutvin, in Zayaitsky, in Kuznetsy, in Pyzhi, on Bersenevka, in Pupyshi. And also the chapel of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker near the Stone Bridge. Saint Nicholas lived at the turn of the 3rd and 4th centuries and was a bishop in the city of Myra in Asia Minor. He became famous for many exploits during his lifetime, but more miracles happened after his death. There is not a single Christian land in the world in which the miracles of St. Nicholas have not happened.
There are many lives of the saint, describing the earthly life of Nicholas and the miracles after his dormition. “Come to Rus' and see that there is no city, no village, where the many miracles of St. Nicholas were not multiplied,” writes an 11th-century Kiev scribe. What explains such strong veneration in Rus' for the archbishop from the Greek city of Myra in the Lycian region? A descendant of Kiy, the legendary Prince Askold was one of the first to be baptized in Rus'. Some historians and researchers believe that the Baptism of Rus' itself took place not in 989, but 133 years earlier - in 856. Princes Askold and Dir marched on unprotected Constantinople.
The city was saved from inevitable terrible destruction by a miracle that happened through the prayer of Patriarch Photius: an unexpected storm smashed most of the Russian ships into pieces. Askold and Dir, amazed by this miracle, were baptized in Constantinople along with their entire army. In history, this event is called the “Askoldovo” Baptism of Rus'. When the princes returned to Kyiv, they were met by dissatisfied townspeople: not only did they not capture Constantinople, but they also converted to Christianity. The pagan prince Oleg decided to seize power in Kyiv, and the Orthodox princes Askold and Dir prevented him. The Laurentian Chronicle says:
“And Oleg’s speech to Askolodovi and Dirov: “You are not a prince, nor a prince of a family, but I am a prince of a prince.” And she brought out Igor: “He is the son of Rurik.” And she killed Askolod and Dir, and carried her to the mountain and buried her and on the mountain, which is now the covenant of Ougorskoe, where Olmin’s court is now; On that grave he placed a shrine to St. Nicholas, and Dirov’s grave behind St. Orina.” Askold took the name Nikolai in baptism, which is why the Church of the Icon was erected on his grave. This temple, according to legend, was built by order of the Orthodox Princess Olga. It turns out that the first Christian in Rus' was named Nicholas, and the first Russian church was consecrated in honor of the Miracle Worker of Myra.
At the beginning of the 11th century, the St. Nicholas Monastery already existed in Kyiv. In Sofia of Kyiv for a long time The miraculous icon “Nicholas the Wet” was kept, painted in memory of the saint’s first miracle in Rus' - the wondrous salvation of a baby who drowned in the Dnieper. Since then, Saint Nicholas has not left our country and has always been the intercessor and prayer book of the Russian land. Nicholas was at the same time the patron saint of rulers, princes and intercessor for ordinary people in all troubles and sorrows. A huge number of proverbs, sayings and songs are dedicated to him. Every year on December 6 - the day of remembrance of the saint - the boys went from house to house, glorified the saint and sang special poems in his honor:
Mikola, St. Mikola,
Mozhaisky, Zaraisky,
Passer of the seas,
Confessor of the earth...
And to him, the world, glory,
Glory is a power
All over his land
Throughout the entire population,
Glory until now
And centuries, amen.
So it is not surprising that so many churches in Moscow are consecrated in honor of St. Nicholas of Myra. At the end of the 17th century, residents of the wealthy Kadashevskaya Sloboda were assigned to the parish of St. Nicholas Church in Tolmachi. The new parishioners of the temple were the guests - father and son Kondraty and Longin Dobrynin. “Guests” in Rus' were merchants who were engaged in trade with other cities and countries. Thanks to the guests, guest courtyards also appeared. Because of the opportunity to lead large trade the guests were the richest merchants. Many of them were distinguished by piety, piety, strong faith and built new churches for the glory of the Lord.
Such were the Dobrynin merchants. In 1697, on the site of the wooden Church of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker, they built a new stone church, which consisted of a two-story quadrangle with a decorative five-domed dome, a single-pillar refectory and a two-tier bell tower. The zakomars of the church were decorated with exactly the same decorative shells with pearls as those of the Archangel Cathedral. At the request of the temple builders, the main altar became the Descent of the Holy Spirit, and Nikolsky was moved to the refectory. At the end of the 17th century, the church was called differently: John the Baptist Yasovaya (after the aisle of the old wooden church), Dukhovskaya or Soshestvenskaya, in Kadashev.
In 1770, church parishioner Ekaterina Demidova built a chapel of the Intercession. She wanted the chapel to be consecrated in honor of the icon “Quench My Sorrows,” but at that time there was a ban on consecrating altars in the name of icons of the Mother of God. Therefore, Demidova had to choose between the Mother of God holidays. At the request of the donor, the icon “Quench My Sorrows” was installed in the local row of the iconostasis in the most honorable place - to the left of the Royal Doors. At the same time, a major renovation of the temple was carried out. After the plague epidemic of 1771, there were significantly fewer parishioners and wealthy benefactors and the welfare of the temple decreased significantly.
In 1812, a real miracle happened: St. Nicholas Church in Tolmachi remained undamaged in the fire, although almost its entire parish burned to the ground. Believing in Nikola’s miraculous protection, the residents of the settlement took refuge in the church from the fire. Leaving Moscow, the French plundered churches filled with gold and silver. The church property of the Church of St. Nicholas in Tolmachi was preserved thanks to the heroic fortitude of the priest Ioann Andreev. He hid the treasures under the floor and withstood all the tortures of Napoleonic monsters. Father John soon died from his wounds. After the expulsion of the French, St. Nicholas Church was assigned to the Church of Gregory of Neocaesarea.
Services in St. Nicholas Church resumed only in 1814. Three years after one of the morning services in the Intercession chapel, the priest found a wooden ark with particles of the relics of the saints, the Robe of the Lord and the Robe of the Mother of God. This ark became the main shrine of the Church of St. Nicholas in Tolmachi, which protected the parish from epidemics of the 1830s and 40s. In 1833, the old bell tower leaned a little, and cracks appeared along the walls of the church. The temple needed reconstruction. The bell tower and refectory were dismantled, and in their place new ones were erected in Moscow Empire style according to the design of the architect F.M. Shestakova. There were two symmetrical side-chapels in the refectory.
The western facade protruded beyond the red line, which increased the dominant position of the temple in the development of the alley. Inside, the refectory was decorated with artificial marble, which perfectly combined with gilded carved iconostases and stucco cornices. Wall painting was completely absent then. The church still had three altars: the main altar of the Descent of the Holy Spirit and two side altars - St. Nicholas and Pokrovsky. The consecration of the St. Nicholas chapel was attended by Metropolitan Philaret of Moscow, who delivered the famous sermon “On the continuance of the grace of God in the Church of Christ until the end of the century.”
Soon the shortcomings of artificial marble became evident, and for several years they had to repair it. In 1839, the vaults were whitewashed, and later they were covered with paintings. The reconstruction of the temple according to the project of 1833 was completed only in 1858, when the windows and doors in the main temple of the Descent of the Holy Spirit were removed, the 17th-century altar was dismantled and new apses with higher vaults were erected on its foundation. The walls and dome of the church were re-painted, and a new five-tiered gilded iconostasis was installed - an exact copy of the previous one. The parishioners especially liked the painting on the western wall - the scene of the expulsion of merchants from the temple.
The Savior had such a mournful and menacing appearance that everyone in the temple could not even imagine behaving indecently. The new slender three-tier bell tower, towering above the low houses, became one of the architectural dominants of Zamoskvorechye, along with the bell tower of the Church of the Resurrection in Kadashi and the Church of Clement. In the middle of the 19th century, famous and wealthy merchants lived in the parish of St. Nicholas Church in Tolmachi: the Bulochkins, Kozlinins, Medyntsevs, Strakhovs, Chizhovs and Shestovs. Thanks to their donations, the temple grew richer, the sacristy was replenished with expensive utensils, precious frames and beautiful vestments.
Denis Drozdov