Freeland tribune. (Freeland, Pa.) 1888-1921, 1889-09-05
A FANTASTIC EDIFICE.
The Strangest and Most Whimsical
Building in the World.

The history of the church of Vasili
Blagennoi is as strange as its aspect. 1t
was built by order of Ivan the Terrible,
at the expense of the principality of
haZan, as an expression of gratitude to
God for the Cars conquest of that
country. The name of the architect,
an Italian, is unknown, but tradition
relates that his eyes We're burnt out by
order OF Ivan to prevent him designing
III future any more wonderful monu
ments. "It is my wish" said the ter
rble autocrat, "that this sanctuary re-
main the unique and glorious monu
ment of the genius of this man." In
the basement of the edifice are two
chapels, and on the upper story nine
chapels, surmounted by nine cupolas,
each different in shape, dimensions,
color, details, style and structural dis
position. The spire, too, is placed at
the east and not at the west, as ortho-
doxy demands. The facades, again, are
all different and without discernible
plan, and the whole structure, with it's
suggestions of Hindoo, Byzantine,
Gothic and nondescript architecture,
and its profusion of painted ornaments
and masses of crude yellow, blue, red
and green, forms an admirable and
mysterious harmony, the secret of which
none can explain, and the charm of
which no words can describe. The
whole exterior, with its superimposed
arches, its profusion of color and gild-
ing, its painting of roses and other
flowers in panels all over the walls, is
strangely original. On the pedestal
formed by the nine chape.s and their
basement are placed belfries and cupolas
starting upward from masses of masonry
resembling the imbricated foliage of the
artichoke, the scales of the pine cone,
or the opening buds of the cactus
flower. In the chief belfry the Italian
element is clearly ,perceptible in the
first three stories, above which is story
resembling an Indian pagoda, which in
its turn is surmounted by hexagonal
crocketed spire, ON the summit of which
is a lantern and an onion-shaped gilt
cap. Another belfry supports cupola
in the shape of a pineapple all covered
with pointed facets; on another the
pineapple cupola is laced over with O
symmetrical network through whose
meshes. the points alone are visible.
Another cupola initiates the ribbed
form of melon; another, the twisted
folds of monumental turban; another,
the close scales of the serpent. Let it
be remembered, too, that each of these
cupolas is of different color-one
orange, another sky blue, another apple
green, another deep red; and that, be-
sides PAINT in profusion, the mou dings,
imbrications and tiers of arches are
IL I al
glazed faience. OF this fanstastic archi-
tectural dream, suggestive of uncanny
sea monsters, half fish and half-hower,
of gigantic fruits or of vegetables and
Oriental turbans of such capric:ous and
impossible proportions as one may con-
ceiye in nightmare, Theophile
Gautier has given us poets descrip-
ton, which we cannot do better than
cite:
"The Church of Vas;li Blagennoi,
he says, sis without doubt the most
original monument in the world; it le-
calls nothing that one has ever seen,
and belongs to no known style One
might imagine it to be a gigantic madre-
pore, crystalized colossus, q stalactite
grotto turned upside down-a thing
which has neither prototype nor simili
tude. 1t might be taken for Hindoo,
Chinese or Thibetan pagoda. In look
ing at this impossible church one is
tempted to ask if it is not a whimsical
will To- -the-wisp, IN edifce formed of
clouds Enthusiastically colored by the sun,
which the movement of the air will
presently cause to change in form OF
vanish into nothingness. - Boston
Transcript.