A three-hundred-pood bell was brought to Vitebsk for the Assumption Cathedral

December 8, Vitebsk / Diana Kurilo - BELTA /. The largest church in Vitebsk, the Assumption Cathedral, has received a gift of 10 bells, including a 300-pood giant. The bells have been successfully delivered from Moscow to Vitebsk, and a thanksgiving prayer service has been held for them, the abbot of the cathedral, Father Mikhail (Martynovich), told a BELTA correspondent. According to Father Mikhail, the 300-pood bell is the largest in Belarus. It and the other bells were cast by Moscow founders with funds from Russian patrons. The bell-making masters were advised by the chief bell-ringer of the Kremlin cathedrals and the Cathedral of Christ the Saviour. The donated bells will soon be installed to supplement the 10 bells already on the church's bell tower. Thus, the bell tower of the Assumption Cathedral will consist of 20 bells. So far, no church in the Vitebsk region has such a number of bells. Bell ringing is an integral part of Orthodox worship and a priceless heritage of ancient culture. It is the only musical instrument used in Orthodox worship, but bell ringing is not considered music by Orthodox Christians. The restoration of the Assumption Cathedral is nearing completion. Finishing work is currently underway in the church, gilded chandeliers have been installed, and the wall painting is being completed. It is worth noting that, in addition to traditional biblical scenes, the frescoes will depict the faces of saints of the Belarusian land. Along with the interior work, landscaping of the territory adjacent to the church, including the embankments of the Western Dvina and the Vitba River flowing into it, is being completed. The restoration of the 18th-century architectural monument began in 1998. At that time, Patriarch Alexy II of Moscow and All Rus' laid a capsule with a commemorative charter at the foundation of the church and consecrated the first stone for the construction of the cathedral. The Assumption Cathedral is built on a high bank at the confluence of the Vitba and the Western Dvina. Until the mid-1930s, it was the hallmark of Vitebsk and was among the most magnificent churches of the Russian Empire. In 1911, a color photograph of its interior was even taken – the cathedral of provincial Vitebsk was so beautiful. The construction of the church began in 1743. The author of the project and the head of construction work was architect Joseph Fontana. According to some sources, the Vitebsk cathedral was a reduced copy of one of the churches in Rome, built by the famous architect Anorio Longhi. In 1936, the Assumption Cathedral was destroyed by sappers under the command of Pyotr Grigorenko, who later became one of the famous dissidents and human rights activists. The restoration project of the Assumption Cathedral is based on archival materials and is an exact replica of the destroyed one. The size of the church is 55 m by 33 m. The height of the main dome is about 50 m, and the two bell towers soar up to almost 40 m. According to the architects' design, wide staircases lead from the embankment to the foot of the church. -0-