Andriyivskyy Descent
Encyclopedia
Andriyivskyy Descent is a historic descent connecting Kiev
's Upper Town neighborhood and the historically commercial Podil
neighborhood. The street, often advertised by tour guides and operators as the "Montmartre
of Kiev", is a major tourist attraction of the city.
The descent, totalling 720 metres (2,362.2 ft) in length, is constructed of laid cobblestones. It winds down steeply around the Zamkova Hora hill, ending near the Kontraktova Square
in the Podil. The Andriyivskyy Descent is marked by a couple historic landmarks, including the Castle of Richard the Lionheart, the 18th century baroque
Saint Andrew's Church, famed Russian writer
Mikhail Bulgakov's house, and numerous other monuments.
Recent talk of the descent's reconstruction has been going since 2006, when a local grassroots
organization aimed at saving the Andriyivskyy Descent collected more than 1,000 signatures to petition local authorities to take action on the descent's reconstruction. On June 23, 2009, the Kiev City Council
administration approved the reconstruction of the Andriyivskyi Descent, which was officially announced a year earlier by Mayor
Leonid Chernovetsky. The exact timeline for reconstruction has not yet been adopted, although the reconstruction's budget has been drafted in the city's 2010 budget.
) near the ornate late-baroque
Saint Andrew's Church (which gave the street its current name). The street continues on down and descends to the Podil
district were it ends at the Kontraktova Square
. In the past times, the descent was known as Borychiv Descent
mentioned as "Боричев увоз" (Borichev uvoz) by Nestor the Chronicler
in his Primary Chronicle
and in the 12th century poem, The Tale of Igor's Campaign (Slovo o polku Ihorevim)
. The descent's current name is derived from the 18th century, at the time when the Saint Andrew's Church was erected atop the hill.
In the 18th and 19th centuries, the street was mainly inhabited by merchants and craftspeople. Although they are long gone due to the sweeping demographic changes in Kiev during times of the late Russian Empire
and the Soviet Union, the street is once again thriving thanks to its unique topology, architecture, rich history and also many gift shops and small art galleries showcasing various paintings and sculptures by Ukrainian artists. The descent is one of the favorite spots for Kievans and tourists alike. It is also notable for the many festival
s it holds, including various art festivals and the Kiev Day
celebrations on the last weekend of May.
The street's location in the city and its landmark attraction has made it lately a highly prestigious area, with several new luxurious restaurants. However, the descent's sewer and water systems have not been changed within the past 100 years, thereby underlining the need for a new system to be installed. Although, city authorities have not yet scheduled a new sewer project system to be installed.
neighborhood. One of the hills, known as Uzdyhal’nytsia, was the place where pre-Christian idols once stood (see: Baptism of Kiev
), and another hill, called Zamkova Hora, served as a castle hill during the Middle Ages
. For many centuries, this passageway was very steep and inconvenient, which is the reason why it was not inhabited for a long time. Therefore, the first buildings were erected here only in the 17th century, and the first apartment buildings began appearing towards the end of the 19th century.
In 1711, by the order of then-Governor of Kiev
, the route between the Zamkova and Andriyivskyy mountains were expanded, thus allowing traffic to become more suitable for horses and wagon carriages. The Andriyivskyy Descent was renamed in 1920 in honor of young revolutionary Georgiy Liver. In 1944, it was decided to return the street to its prior name; in 1957, the street was renamed back to Andreevsky Spusk—the Russian
variant of Andriyivskyy Descent. In the 1980s, the Andriyivskyy Descent received a thorough reconstruction after years of disrepair.
One legend states that when Andrew the Apostle visited the uninhabited mountains in the mid-stream of the Dnieper River
(today's Andriyvskyy Descent area), he put up a cross atop of the hill where the descent starts and prophesied a foundation of a great Christian city. Since that time, wooden churches sprang up around in the vicinity, completing his prophecy.
According to another legend, there was once a sea where the Dnieper River
now flows. When Saint Andrew came to Kiev and erected a cross on the place where the Saint Andrew's Church now stands, the sea went away. The only part that remained of the sea is under the mountain on which Kiev sits today. When the church was built there in the 18th century, a spring opened under the alter. The church has no bells, because, according to the legend, when the first bell strikes, the water can revive again and flood the left bank of Kiev.
; the 20th century Castle of Richard the Lionheart; the Museum of One Street, chronicling the Andriyivskyy Descent's history; and numerous other monuments attract tourists and Kievans alike to the area.
named the building "The Castle of Richard the Lionheart
", after the 12th century English king in his book. It has been established that the modernized Gothic fronts were practically copied from a published design for a Saint Petersburg
building by the architect R. Marfeld. But the stunning relief of Andriyivskyy Descent softened the effect of this plagiarism.
The cellar of the building contained a barber's shop, a grocery store and a butcher shop. The remaining premises were used as apartments for rent. When Dimitri Orlov died in 1911 while building a railroad in the Russian Far East
, his widow, left with five children, had to sell off the house to pay her family's debts. In 1983, renovation works were started on the building to convert it into a hotel. Since the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991, various reconstruction works have been largely unsuccessful. As of 2009, the Castle of Richard the Lionheart still stands empty and fenced off in renovation.
Mikhail Bulgakov
, a famous Kiev-born Russian writer
, and his family lived on the street at two different houses in the early-20th century. In Bulgakov's novel The White Guard
the author vividly describes the street and house (he calls it Aleksey Descent - "Alekseevskiy Spusk") in the turbulent times of the 1917 Russian Revolution
. The address, at No.13 Andriyivskyy Descent is still commonly called the Bulgakov House and displays a plaque with the address the writer used in his book (No.13 Alekseevsky Spusk) (see image).
A museum was opened inside the preserved building to mark the 100th birthday of Mikhail Bulgakov on May 15, 1991. The upper floor of the museum houses an exhibition of various Bulgakov objects, and the lower floor contains thematic exhibitions. The house, built in 1888 and designed by architect N. Gardenin, was thoroughly renovated before the opening of the museum. A memorial plaque with Bulgakov's portrait is now hanging on the front of the building.
Another attraction of the Andriyivskyy Descent is the baroque
Saint Andrew's Church. It is located atop a hill overlooking the Podil neighborhood from the Andriyivskyy Descent. The idea to construct the Saint Andrew's Church came from the Russian Tsaress
Elizabeth Petrovna. When she visited Kiev in 1747–1754, she laid the foundation brick of the church with her own hand, after which the church was constructed, to a design by the imperial architect Bartolomeo Rastrelli
.
As the Tsaress planned to take personal care of the church, the church has no parish, and there is no belltower to call the congregation to divine service. But she died before the construction ended, so the church was never cared for by Elizabeth Petrovna. After Elizabeth's death, the Kiev court took no interest maintaining in the church, last consecrated in 1767. Later, there were not enough funds to maintain the church, which left the maintaining of the church to private and voluntary funds, such as Andrey Muraviov.
In 1963, Rastrelli's original plans for the building were found in Vienna
, Austria. This made it possible to reconstruct the original images on the building. The plan of restoration was carried out in the 1970s, overlooked by the main architect-restorer, V. Korneyeva. Since 1968, the church has been opened as a museum to tourists and visitors. The church is now owned by the Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church
.
Also, the museum has a unique collection of various works by Ukrainian philologist P. Zhitetsky, Arabist and professor of the Kiev University T. Kezma, journalist and public figure A.Savenko, Ukrainian writer G.Tyutyunnyk, which have lived in the house №34 in the different periods of the twentieth century. Another important part of the collection in the museum are the is the memorabilia of professors of Kiev Theological Academy A. Bulgakov, S. Golubev, P. Kudryavtsev, F. Titov, A.Glagolev, famed doctors Th. Janovsky and D. Popov, and other prominent local figures.
The museum also has a large collection of antique books. Book relics of the exposition include a famous Trebnik of the Metropolitan of Kiev Petro Mohyla, rare editions of works written by professors and graduates of the Kyiv-Mohyla Academy, unique books written by the Ukrainian Walter Scott, M.Grabovsky, the Defender of Orthodoxy, A.Muravyov, and the works of Mikhail Bulgakov
published in his lifetime.
, the Grand Prince of Novgorod and Kiev, which depicts him holding a model of the Saint Sophia Cathedral
. Another is the monument to Pronya Prokopovna and Svirid Golohvastov, which was unveiled in 1989, depicting two characters
, Pronya Prokopovna and Svirid Golohvastov, from the play Chasing Two Rabbits, which was written by Mykhailo Starytskyi. Another main monument on the street is dedicated to the famous Ukrainian poet and artist Taras Shevchenko
, located to the right of the monument to Yaroslav the Wise. Most recently, a monument to Mikhail Bulgakov was opened on the Andriyivskyy Descent, the first dedicated to the writer in the former Soviet Union.
Kiev
Kiev or Kyiv is the capital and the largest city of Ukraine, located in the north central part of the country on the Dnieper River. The population as of the 2001 census was 2,611,300. However, higher numbers have been cited in the press....
's Upper Town neighborhood and the historically commercial Podil
Podil
The Podil or Podilskyi Raion is a historic neighbourhood and an administrative raion in Kiev, the capital of Ukraine. It is one of the oldest neighborhoods of Kiev, the birthplace of the city's trade, commerce and industry...
neighborhood. The street, often advertised by tour guides and operators as the "Montmartre
Montmartre
Montmartre is a hill which is 130 metres high, giving its name to the surrounding district, in the north of Paris in the 18th arrondissement, a part of the Right Bank. Montmartre is primarily known for the white-domed Basilica of the Sacré Cœur on its summit and as a nightclub district...
of Kiev", is a major tourist attraction of the city.
The descent, totalling 720 metres (2,362.2 ft) in length, is constructed of laid cobblestones. It winds down steeply around the Zamkova Hora hill, ending near the Kontraktova Square
Kontraktova Square
Kontraktova Square or Kontraktovaya Square is a square in the historic Podil neighborhood of Kiev, the capital of Ukraine. The square is an important economic, cultural, and transport center of the Podil, containing numerous architectural and historical monuments.-History:Kontraktova Square is...
in the Podil. The Andriyivskyy Descent is marked by a couple historic landmarks, including the Castle of Richard the Lionheart, the 18th century baroque
Baroque
The Baroque is a period and the style that used exaggerated motion and clear, easily interpreted detail to produce drama, tension, exuberance, and grandeur in sculpture, painting, literature, dance, and music...
Saint Andrew's Church, famed Russian writer
Russian literature
Russian literature refers to the literature of Russia or its émigrés, and to the Russian-language literature of several independent nations once a part of what was historically Russia or the Soviet Union...
Mikhail Bulgakov's house, and numerous other monuments.
Recent talk of the descent's reconstruction has been going since 2006, when a local grassroots
Grassroots
A grassroots movement is one driven by the politics of a community. The term implies that the creation of the movement and the group supporting it are natural and spontaneous, highlighting the differences between this and a movement that is orchestrated by traditional power structures...
organization aimed at saving the Andriyivskyy Descent collected more than 1,000 signatures to petition local authorities to take action on the descent's reconstruction. On June 23, 2009, the Kiev City Council
Kiev City Council
Kiev City Council or Kyivrada is the city council of Kiev municipality, the highest representative body of the city community. The members of city council are directly elected by Kievans and the council is chaired by the Mayor of Kiev .The council meets in a 1950s City Council building...
administration approved the reconstruction of the Andriyivskyi Descent, which was officially announced a year earlier by Mayor
Mayor of Kiev
Mayor of Kiev is the elected mayor of the municipality of Kiev, the capital of Ukraine, who is also normally automatically appointed as Head of the City's State Administration and Chair of the City Council....
Leonid Chernovetsky. The exact timeline for reconstruction has not yet been adopted, although the reconstruction's budget has been drafted in the city's 2010 budget.
Description
The Andriyivskyy Descent begins on the summit of the Starokyivska Hora (Old Kiev mountainSummit (topography)
In topography, a summit is a point on a surface that is higher in elevation than all points immediately adjacent to it. Mathematically, a summit is a local maximum in elevation...
) near the ornate late-baroque
Baroque architecture
Baroque architecture is a term used to describe the building style of the Baroque era, begun in late sixteenth century Italy, that took the Roman vocabulary of Renaissance architecture and used it in a new rhetorical and theatrical fashion, often to express the triumph of the Catholic Church and...
Saint Andrew's Church (which gave the street its current name). The street continues on down and descends to the Podil
Podil
The Podil or Podilskyi Raion is a historic neighbourhood and an administrative raion in Kiev, the capital of Ukraine. It is one of the oldest neighborhoods of Kiev, the birthplace of the city's trade, commerce and industry...
district were it ends at the Kontraktova Square
Kontraktova Square
Kontraktova Square or Kontraktovaya Square is a square in the historic Podil neighborhood of Kiev, the capital of Ukraine. The square is an important economic, cultural, and transport center of the Podil, containing numerous architectural and historical monuments.-History:Kontraktova Square is...
. In the past times, the descent was known as Borychiv Descent
Borychiv Descent
Borychiv Descent is a historic descent in the historical and merchant quarter of Kiev, the Podil neighbourhood. It is located near the Poshtova Square....
mentioned as "Боричев увоз" (Borichev uvoz) by Nestor the Chronicler
Nestor the Chronicler
Saint Nestor the Chronicler was the reputed author of the Primary Chronicle, , Life of the Venerable Theodosius of the Kiev Caves, Life of the Holy Passion Bearers, Boris and Gleb, and of the so-called Reading.Nestor was a monk of the Monastery of the Caves in Kiev from 1073...
in his Primary Chronicle
Primary Chronicle
The Primary Chronicle , Ruthenian Primary Chronicle or Russian Primary Chronicle, is a history of Kievan Rus' from about 850 to 1110, originally compiled in Kiev about 1113.- Three editions :...
and in the 12th century poem, The Tale of Igor's Campaign (Slovo o polku Ihorevim)
The Tale of Igor's Campaign
The Tale of Igor's Campaign is an anonymous epic poem written in the Old East Slavic language.The title is occasionally translated as The Song of Igor's Campaign, The Lay of Igor's Campaign, and The Lay of...
. The descent's current name is derived from the 18th century, at the time when the Saint Andrew's Church was erected atop the hill.
In the 18th and 19th centuries, the street was mainly inhabited by merchants and craftspeople. Although they are long gone due to the sweeping demographic changes in Kiev during times of the late Russian Empire
Russian Empire
The Russian Empire was a state that existed from 1721 until the Russian Revolution of 1917. It was the successor to the Tsardom of Russia and the predecessor of the Soviet Union...
and the Soviet Union, the street is once again thriving thanks to its unique topology, architecture, rich history and also many gift shops and small art galleries showcasing various paintings and sculptures by Ukrainian artists. The descent is one of the favorite spots for Kievans and tourists alike. It is also notable for the many festival
Festival
A festival or gala is an event, usually and ordinarily staged by a local community, which centers on and celebrates some unique aspect of that community and the Festival....
s it holds, including various art festivals and the Kiev Day
Kiev Day
Kiev Day or officially the Day of Kyiv is a holiday in the Ukrainian capital Kiev usually celebrated in the last weekend of May. The Kiev Day was established similarly to other holidays celebrated in many cities and towns across Ukraine. Celebrations typically last the two days of the last...
celebrations on the last weekend of May.
The street's location in the city and its landmark attraction has made it lately a highly prestigious area, with several new luxurious restaurants. However, the descent's sewer and water systems have not been changed within the past 100 years, thereby underlining the need for a new system to be installed. Although, city authorities have not yet scheduled a new sewer project system to be installed.
History
The descent, located between two hills, is the shortest passageway from the historic Old or Upper Town ("Князівська Гора"; Kniazivs’ka Hora) to the commercial PodilPodil
The Podil or Podilskyi Raion is a historic neighbourhood and an administrative raion in Kiev, the capital of Ukraine. It is one of the oldest neighborhoods of Kiev, the birthplace of the city's trade, commerce and industry...
neighborhood. One of the hills, known as Uzdyhal’nytsia, was the place where pre-Christian idols once stood (see: Baptism of Kiev
Baptism of Kievan Rus'
The Christianization of Kievan Rus took place in several stages. In early 867, Patriarch Photius of Constantinople announced to other Orthodox patriarchs that the Rus', baptised by his bishop, took to Christianity with particular enthusiasm...
), and another hill, called Zamkova Hora, served as a castle hill during the Middle Ages
Middle Ages
The Middle Ages is a periodization of European history from the 5th century to the 15th century. The Middle Ages follows the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 and precedes the Early Modern Era. It is the middle period of a three-period division of Western history: Classic, Medieval and Modern...
. For many centuries, this passageway was very steep and inconvenient, which is the reason why it was not inhabited for a long time. Therefore, the first buildings were erected here only in the 17th century, and the first apartment buildings began appearing towards the end of the 19th century.
In 1711, by the order of then-Governor of Kiev
Kiev Governorate
Kiev Governorate , or Government of Kiev, was an administrative division of the Russian Empire.The governorate was established in 1708 along with seven other governorates and was transformed into a viceroyalty in 1781...
, the route between the Zamkova and Andriyivskyy mountains were expanded, thus allowing traffic to become more suitable for horses and wagon carriages. The Andriyivskyy Descent was renamed in 1920 in honor of young revolutionary Georgiy Liver. In 1944, it was decided to return the street to its prior name; in 1957, the street was renamed back to Andreevsky Spusk—the Russian
Russian language
Russian is a Slavic language used primarily in Russia, Belarus, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan. It is an unofficial but widely spoken language in Ukraine, Moldova, Latvia, Turkmenistan and Estonia and, to a lesser extent, the other countries that were once constituent republics...
variant of Andriyivskyy Descent. In the 1980s, the Andriyivskyy Descent received a thorough reconstruction after years of disrepair.
Legends
During its long history, the Andriyivskyy Descent has a couple of legends surround it.One legend states that when Andrew the Apostle visited the uninhabited mountains in the mid-stream of the Dnieper River
Dnieper River
The Dnieper River is one of the major rivers of Europe that flows from Russia, through Belarus and Ukraine, to the Black Sea.The total length is and has a drainage basin of .The river is noted for its dams and hydroelectric stations...
(today's Andriyvskyy Descent area), he put up a cross atop of the hill where the descent starts and prophesied a foundation of a great Christian city. Since that time, wooden churches sprang up around in the vicinity, completing his prophecy.
According to another legend, there was once a sea where the Dnieper River
Dnieper River
The Dnieper River is one of the major rivers of Europe that flows from Russia, through Belarus and Ukraine, to the Black Sea.The total length is and has a drainage basin of .The river is noted for its dams and hydroelectric stations...
now flows. When Saint Andrew came to Kiev and erected a cross on the place where the Saint Andrew's Church now stands, the sea went away. The only part that remained of the sea is under the mountain on which Kiev sits today. When the church was built there in the 18th century, a spring opened under the alter. The church has no bells, because, according to the legend, when the first bell strikes, the water can revive again and flood the left bank of Kiev.
Attractions
The Andriyivskyi Descent contains numerous historic attractions and museums. The 18th century baroque Saint Andrew's Church; the late 19th century Mikhail Bulgakov's house-museumMikhail Bulgakov Museum
Mikhail Bulgakov Museum is a museum in Kiev, Ukraine, dedicated to a Kiev-born Russian writer Mikhail Bulgakov....
; the 20th century Castle of Richard the Lionheart; the Museum of One Street, chronicling the Andriyivskyy Descent's history; and numerous other monuments attract tourists and Kievans alike to the area.
The Castle of Richard the Lionheart
The "Castle of Richard the Lionheart" house was built from 1902–1904. It was originally supposed to be called Orlov House in reference to its constructor Dmitry Orlov. But because its owner failed to clear the house construction with the city's authorities, a major scandal arose. Viktor NekrasovViktor Nekrasov
Viktor Platonovich Nekrasov was a Russian writer, journalist and editor.-Biography:Nekrasov was born in Kiev and graduated with a degree in architecture in 1936. Between 1937 and 1941, he was an actor and set designer with the Kiev Russian Drama Theater...
named the building "The Castle of Richard the Lionheart
Richard I of England
Richard I was King of England from 6 July 1189 until his death. He also ruled as Duke of Normandy, Duke of Aquitaine, Duke of Gascony, Lord of Cyprus, Count of Anjou, Count of Maine, Count of Nantes, and Overlord of Brittany at various times during the same period...
", after the 12th century English king in his book. It has been established that the modernized Gothic fronts were practically copied from a published design for a Saint Petersburg
Saint Petersburg
Saint Petersburg is a city and a federal subject of Russia located on the Neva River at the head of the Gulf of Finland on the Baltic Sea...
building by the architect R. Marfeld. But the stunning relief of Andriyivskyy Descent softened the effect of this plagiarism.
The cellar of the building contained a barber's shop, a grocery store and a butcher shop. The remaining premises were used as apartments for rent. When Dimitri Orlov died in 1911 while building a railroad in the Russian Far East
Russian Far East
Russian Far East is a term that refers to the Russian part of the Far East, i.e., extreme east parts of Russia, between Lake Baikal in Eastern Siberia and the Pacific Ocean...
, his widow, left with five children, had to sell off the house to pay her family's debts. In 1983, renovation works were started on the building to convert it into a hotel. Since the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991, various reconstruction works have been largely unsuccessful. As of 2009, the Castle of Richard the Lionheart still stands empty and fenced off in renovation.
Mikhail Bulgakov's house
Mikhail Bulgakov
Mikhaíl Afanásyevich Bulgákov was a Soviet Russian writer and playwright active in the first half of the 20th century. He is best known for his novel The Master and Margarita, which The Times of London has called one of the masterpieces of the 20th century.-Biography:Mikhail Bulgakov was born on...
, a famous Kiev-born Russian writer
Russian literature
Russian literature refers to the literature of Russia or its émigrés, and to the Russian-language literature of several independent nations once a part of what was historically Russia or the Soviet Union...
, and his family lived on the street at two different houses in the early-20th century. In Bulgakov's novel The White Guard
The White Guard
The White Guard is a novel by 20th century Russian writer Mikhail Bulgakov, famed for his critically acclaimed later work The Master and Margarita.-History:...
the author vividly describes the street and house (he calls it Aleksey Descent - "Alekseevskiy Spusk") in the turbulent times of the 1917 Russian Revolution
Russian Revolution of 1917
The Russian Revolution is the collective term for a series of revolutions in Russia in 1917, which destroyed the Tsarist autocracy and led to the creation of the Soviet Union. The Tsar was deposed and replaced by a provisional government in the first revolution of February 1917...
. The address, at No.13 Andriyivskyy Descent is still commonly called the Bulgakov House and displays a plaque with the address the writer used in his book (No.13 Alekseevsky Spusk) (see image).
A museum was opened inside the preserved building to mark the 100th birthday of Mikhail Bulgakov on May 15, 1991. The upper floor of the museum houses an exhibition of various Bulgakov objects, and the lower floor contains thematic exhibitions. The house, built in 1888 and designed by architect N. Gardenin, was thoroughly renovated before the opening of the museum. A memorial plaque with Bulgakov's portrait is now hanging on the front of the building.
Saint Andrew's Church
Baroque
The Baroque is a period and the style that used exaggerated motion and clear, easily interpreted detail to produce drama, tension, exuberance, and grandeur in sculpture, painting, literature, dance, and music...
Saint Andrew's Church. It is located atop a hill overlooking the Podil neighborhood from the Andriyivskyy Descent. The idea to construct the Saint Andrew's Church came from the Russian Tsaress
Tsaritsa
Tsaritsa , formerly spelled czaritsa , is the title of a female autocratic ruler of Bulgaria or Russia, or the title of a tsar's wife....
Elizabeth Petrovna. When she visited Kiev in 1747–1754, she laid the foundation brick of the church with her own hand, after which the church was constructed, to a design by the imperial architect Bartolomeo Rastrelli
Bartolomeo Rastrelli
Francesco Bartolomeo Rastrelli was an Italian architect naturalized Russian. He developed an easily recognizable style of Late Baroque, both sumptuous and majestic...
.
As the Tsaress planned to take personal care of the church, the church has no parish, and there is no belltower to call the congregation to divine service. But she died before the construction ended, so the church was never cared for by Elizabeth Petrovna. After Elizabeth's death, the Kiev court took no interest maintaining in the church, last consecrated in 1767. Later, there were not enough funds to maintain the church, which left the maintaining of the church to private and voluntary funds, such as Andrey Muraviov.
In 1963, Rastrelli's original plans for the building were found in Vienna
Vienna
Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
, Austria. This made it possible to reconstruct the original images on the building. The plan of restoration was carried out in the 1970s, overlooked by the main architect-restorer, V. Korneyeva. Since 1968, the church has been opened as a museum to tourists and visitors. The church is now owned by the Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church
Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church
The Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church is one of the three major Orthodox Churches in Ukraine. Close to ten percent of the Christian population claim to be members of the UAOC. The other Churches are the Ukrainian Orthodox Church-Kiev Patriarchate and the Ukrainian Russophile Orthodox...
.
The One Street Museum
The One Street Museum is another main attraction of the Andriyivskyy Descent, which houses many of the historic items of the descent, containing more than 6,500 exhibits. They include information about the Saint Andrew's Church, the castle of Richard Lionheart, and the many other buildings of the Descent.Also, the museum has a unique collection of various works by Ukrainian philologist P. Zhitetsky, Arabist and professor of the Kiev University T. Kezma, journalist and public figure A.Savenko, Ukrainian writer G.Tyutyunnyk, which have lived in the house №34 in the different periods of the twentieth century. Another important part of the collection in the museum are the is the memorabilia of professors of Kiev Theological Academy A. Bulgakov, S. Golubev, P. Kudryavtsev, F. Titov, A.Glagolev, famed doctors Th. Janovsky and D. Popov, and other prominent local figures.
The museum also has a large collection of antique books. Book relics of the exposition include a famous Trebnik of the Metropolitan of Kiev Petro Mohyla, rare editions of works written by professors and graduates of the Kyiv-Mohyla Academy, unique books written by the Ukrainian Walter Scott, M.Grabovsky, the Defender of Orthodoxy, A.Muravyov, and the works of Mikhail Bulgakov
Mikhail Bulgakov
Mikhaíl Afanásyevich Bulgákov was a Soviet Russian writer and playwright active in the first half of the 20th century. He is best known for his novel The Master and Margarita, which The Times of London has called one of the masterpieces of the 20th century.-Biography:Mikhail Bulgakov was born on...
published in his lifetime.
Monuments
The Andriyivskyy Descent also has a number of monuments. One of them is the monument to Yaroslav the WiseYaroslav I the Wise
Yaroslav I, Grand Prince of Rus, known as Yaroslav the Wise Yaroslav I, Grand Prince of Rus, known as Yaroslav the Wise Yaroslav I, Grand Prince of Rus, known as Yaroslav the Wise (Old Norse: Jarizleifr; ; Old East Slavic and Russian: Ярослав Мудрый; Ukrainian: Ярослав Мудрий; c...
, the Grand Prince of Novgorod and Kiev, which depicts him holding a model of the Saint Sophia Cathedral
Saint Sophia Cathedral in Kiev
Saint Sophia Cathedral in Kiev is an outstanding architectural monument of Kievan Rus'. Today, it is one of the city's best known landmarks and the first Ukrainian patrimony to be inscribed on the World Heritage List along with the Kiev Cave Monastery complex...
. Another is the monument to Pronya Prokopovna and Svirid Golohvastov, which was unveiled in 1989, depicting two characters
Fictional character
A character is the representation of a person in a narrative work of art . Derived from the ancient Greek word kharaktêr , the earliest use in English, in this sense, dates from the Restoration, although it became widely used after its appearance in Tom Jones in 1749. From this, the sense of...
, Pronya Prokopovna and Svirid Golohvastov, from the play Chasing Two Rabbits, which was written by Mykhailo Starytskyi. Another main monument on the street is dedicated to the famous Ukrainian poet and artist Taras Shevchenko
Taras Shevchenko
Taras Hryhorovych Shevchenko -Life:Born into a serf family of Hryhoriy Ivanovych Shevchenko and Kateryna Yakymivna Shevchenko in the village of Moryntsi, of Kiev Governorate of the Russian Empire Shevchenko was orphaned at the age of eleven...
, located to the right of the monument to Yaroslav the Wise. Most recently, a monument to Mikhail Bulgakov was opened on the Andriyivskyy Descent, the first dedicated to the writer in the former Soviet Union.