The Kyiv Lavra church bell tower in the National Kyiv Pechersk Historical Cultural Preserve has opened its doors for visitors again after a 10-year hiatus.
“Anyone
can climb the bell tower each day from 9.30 a.m. until 5 p.m. and
admire a bird’s eye view of the ancient and yet eternally young
Kyiv,” a statement on the preserve’s website reads.
Lyubomyr
Mykhaylyuta, the general director of the Kyiv Pechersk Preserve, said
the tower had not yet had many visitors.
“Today there is no queue to the building because only a few people
know that it has opened,” the director said on March 27, adding
that Lavra preserve workers expect many bell tower visitors in the
future. “Hundreds of people sent us requests to speed up the bell
tower’s restoration last year,” he told the Kyiv Post.
The
bell tower had been closed for reconstruction for the past 10 years.
During that time, architects strengthened its supporting structures,
and they also restored facades and columns so that visitors can now
enjoy the tower’s gold-plated cross and dome. The unique ancient
icons depicting the Mother of God, Apostles and Jesus Christ on the
belfry’s fourth-floor were covered with new paint and vermeil, the
tour desk told the Kyiv Post.
An
admission ticket to the bell tower is Hr 35 and can be purchased at the
box office on the building’s first floor. But visitors will have to
pay an additional Hr 15 to enter the territory where the bell tower
is located. To avoid overcrowding, visitors are let inside only in
small groups. Each group is allowed to stay in the bell tower for up
to half an hour.
There
is no special guided tour of the bell tower building. “All the
information about the building is provided in our usual guided tour
around the preserve. If anyone wants a special tour of the tour,
however, we can arrange it,” Mykhaylyuta said.
The
Kyiv bell tower is 96.5 meters tall and is without a doubt one of the
most beautiful buildings in the Kyiv Pechersk Preserve. But visitors
need to climb up 374 steps to reach its peak! It was built between
1731-1745 according to a project by Ukrainian-Russian architect of
German origin Gottfried Johann Schädel.
The
Kyiv Pechersk Lavra bell tower is located at 21 Sichnevoho Povstannya
St. It is open daily from 9.30 a.m. till 5 p.m. The admission fee is
Hr 35 for adults, and Hr 15 for schoolchildren, students and
pensioners. The admission fee to the National Kyiv Pechersk
Historical Cultural Preserve is Hr 15.
Kyiv
Post staff writer Nataliya Trach can be reached at [email protected]
