Moscow, October 15, 2024
Photo: новоспасский-монастырь.рф
Moscow’s 15th-century Novospassky Monastery celebrated a joyous event on Sunday, October 13, with the return of a number of ancient frescoes that had been seized by the godless Soviets.
The newly restored and returned frescoes were consecrated after the Sunday Liturgy by the monastery abbot His Eminence Metropolitan Gregory of Voskresensk, the Central Vicariate of Moscow reports.
Photo: новоспасский-монастырь.рф
His Eminence noted the significance of the event for the spiritual life of the monastery, as well as the fact that the ancient paintings were preserved by a miracle, by the grace of God:
As you know, our Novospassky monastery was closed during Soviet times, and the ancient prayer-filled walls were prepared for destruction. But part of the sacred objects managed to be saved. The paintings were removed from the walls, reinforced on canvas, and quite recently they were found in the basement of an estate in Moscow where a museum was located. The ancient paintings were restored and now we, like our ancestors, will be able to offer prayers before them.
Photo: новоспасский-монастырь.рф
The spiritual and cultural value of the returned paintings is very high. As Ilya Sergienya, the head of the restoration work on the Novospassky frescoes, revealed, the fragments of fresco painting from the life of St. Prince Vladimir from the southern porch of the Transfiguration Cathedral of the monastery are the last monumental work of the great Kostroma master Gury Nikitin (17th century).
Photo: центрвик.рф
Now the returned frescoes are installed in the Southern Gallery of the Transfiguration Cathedral of the Novospassky Monastery for prayerful veneration.
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