Saint Sophia Cathedral

One of Kyiv's oldest buildings, included among the hundred wonders of the world – Saint Sophia Cathedral. The church was founded in 1037 during the reign of Yaroslav the Wise. From the time of its opening, it played an important role in Kyivan Rus. Foreign ambassadors were received here, ceremonies of investiture as princes were held, and veche assemblies took place. Since for Prince Yaroslav it was important not only to spread Christianity, but also the cultural development of the country, a library and rooms for chronicle writing were opened within the cathedral walls.

The bell tower near Saint Sophia Cathedral appeared only in 1699-1706, during the reign of Ivan Mazepa. Its height reaches 76 m. The bronze bell of the bell tower is one of the largest and oldest in Ukraine.

Interesting facts:

• “Sofia” means “wisdom” in Greek; the church's name was dedicated to the “wisdom of Christian teaching”.
• The area of the cathedral's frescoes is 3000 sq. m.
• The Royal Gates of Saint Sophia Cathedral were melted down, but in 2008 they were recreated from preserved drawings and silver fragments. 104 kg of silver were used for this.
• The sarcophagi of Volodymyr Monomakh, Yaroslav the Wise, and Vsevolod Yaroslavych are preserved in the temple necropolis.
• 177 shades of color were used in the cathedral's mosaics.