The Durham recorder. [volume] (Durham, N.C.) 1879-19??, 1895-01-02
THE CZAR'S TOMB.
Room for Only a Few More Bodies
In the Great Cathedral
Dowdy Decorations u o Decadent School
Mar the Interor--Sarcophag That
Mark wSlre tho Roman
obs Lie.

Mark wStre tho Roman
obs Lie.
Before knowing aught Of its origin
(the Cathedral of IS. Peter and Paul.,
save that 1t was founded by Peter the
Great, whose modest cottage lies close
by, carefully shielded from the weather,
and whose experiences in western
Europe gave him preference for the
style Of the time In which he lived, one
could vouch by merely looking at 1t
from the south side of the Neya, across
the stream, that 1t was designed by o
- ~, ai..-a, .riscs the ST. Petersburg
correspondent of the London News.
1t is devoid alike Of stateliness and
race. 1t has singular spire, true
ftNAe, rising from nondesoript rotund
protGSerance that is supported by a
stucco ypwer. But, perhaps, the most
rrmnrkaNe thing about this structure
is the fact hat the knob and spire were
covered, to{begin with, in beaten gold
worth over &Rur thousand one hun
drrd pounl {st1r rling, which has had to
be laid out mpre than once, for the
spire has 81 zared several times from
lightning xe building itself, which
Is Of dull ri MI Ia washed-out eau de
Nils two 1ndred and ten feet long
AMI nincty-,i i34ht feet wide, thus differ
,ns from mq Russian churches, which
are in the f}btm of a Greek, or equal
armei. eros Within few inches OF
sixty feet ID dGh the cathedral Church
of -. PetrH md Paul strikes one as be-
H., badly fxoportioned, but this evil Is
ahatcd by De space of the high altar
behind III ikonostas, or sacred picture
screen Aswering to our western rood
screen. Which shortsns the east and
west dimensions at all times save for a
few minutes at high mass. The in
ternAl decorations are 1bizarre combin'
alton Of byzantine art, with that of the
wSrst period, the most dowdy, the
dkcadence, of the renaissance, and moi
Sven during great function can the In
side be called imposing.
Right and left outside the gre gate
of ikoaostas are six very plain white
marble sarcophagi and at the west END
are two similar rows, while the whole
of the north side and nearly the whole
Of the south side Of the church are
filed with similar tombs. Not thai
they are real tombs. They merely
mark the spaces below where the Ro-
manoffs lie In vaults. And there Il
not room for more than eight or mint
more without building nausoleum n
an annex to the church, n project
which has already been rlootcd. II u
should be carried out we may hope Ii
the interest of good taste that the
Dutch style Of architecture will be re
ligiously taboocd. On the sarcophagi
whose only structural ornament, II II
can be 50 called, Is q beyeled edgl
around the lids. are laid ormolu
double or byzantine crosses, and thes'
are scarcely visible for the wreaths o.
evergreens and flowers, some new ant
fresh daily for those whose memory i
still green, some dry and withered. a
L-iitting what David calls "a dead maI
out Of mind" On the west end o
every sarcophagus isa brass escutcheoi
giving in the Russian language thu
styles and titles Of him or her who lie
below, little reclEing Of the gray-coate'
soldiers who keep guard over them
and who. capless, bear themselves a
though they felt TO their souls tn
solemnity Of the place and their duty
Interspersed among the white marble
tumbs are palms In pots. plants whicl
would be all the better for littl'
water. though am told they are fre
quentiy changed ana attended 10
There Is not a single scat In the ediac'
save Il throne for the emperor and an
other for tho empress, as the Russian
worshiper Is not by any means allowe,
10 take his ease In Domus Del
Close 10 the south door Is the tomb o
Peter the Great, near an ikon Of 81
Peter, the frame Of which gives tn
height and width Of the flrst empero
at his birth. Facing this picture
the tomb Of the Great Peter, will
whom lies his wife and successor
Catherine I. Catherine II. lies nea
the ikonostaa Opposite the tomb o
Peter |. lies Nicholas l., with whom VI
warred fort- years ago. His brothe
Constantine's tomb Is distinguished b.
two great iron keys, with coloreI
ribbons attached, these being the key
of the oil Polish fOrtresHcs ~ IamOs
and Noilin. o her Of the sarc0phaR
have p1edals and iedaIIions in morocco
cases lying upon them-Petcr Oh
Greats has the golden centenar
medal Of the foundation Of this city
I.13, while on the tot b0f Alexander
lies a silver medal cot r8eDDrnting th
eycntfui year 1919, " zen Ia gran
arnce entered Russia ven hnndre
thousand strong and left IL scarcely
tenth that number. There Is an Ope
gilt iroBwOrk railing round each tomt
on the east end Of which Is fastened
plaque giving In Russian letters th
nsme Of tho great person who lies b,
low Around the walls are trophii
Df arms and shields, flags, forires
koys, regimeutal standards shown
by their coloTs or devices that the
we're taken from Turks and persiani
swedes and Poles, Circassians an
French. There Is not ono British nas
ond there are only two British boa
flags In all Russia. Altogether, II th
church Is bizarre In its ensemble II ha
much that may we'll detain q gisitc
ipr hours, and while one cannot br
think Il would be more impressive
thn windows were filled with staine
giass II must 10 confessed there IL pll
trihl color enough scattered Bbou
Twenty.nins of the goiden.frame
ikons we're painted BY Russian artist
" The order Of Catherine H., and m
one Of them but deserves q little aItel