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January 28, 2007

A little piece of Imperial Russia in Darmstadt

Mausi has previously posted a picture of this little gem of a chapel, once the summer place of worship of the Russian Czar and Czarina. Icons of the murdered Nicholas II and his Czarina adorn one corner of the chapel internally which is now under restoration internally. Years of neglect and candle soot have dulled the internal decoration quite badly, but a start has been made and the bits that have been treated are looking a lot better than the parts yet to be done.

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The external restoration is now complete, but much remains to be done.

The restoration is obviously being done as and when funds are available, it also seems to be very much a labour of love by a very small congregation, none of whom would seem to be that flush in the pocket. It would be nice to hear that they have had a bit of help on some of the internal work they need to complete, it is certainly going to be worth seeing when it is complete. At present the fine Iconostasis is showing its neglect, and several of the more valuable icons have obviously been lost over the years because they have been replaced by photographs, but in its heyday it would have been stunning, and may well be so again!

Posted by The Gray Monk at January 28, 2007 06:36 PM

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