Topic: 400th Anniversary
A memorial bell weighing 17 tons will be cast to honour the Romanov dynasty which marks its 400th anniversary in 2013.
The Russian Orthodox Church has announced a national fund raiser for the project, and has the blessing of His Holiness the Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia, Kirill I. Donations can be made through the Russian Orthodox Church web site.
The bell will be cast for the Novospassky Monastery in Moscow, which is closely connected with the Romanov dynasty. It is here that many members of Romanov boyars are buried, as well as the remains of the Grand Duke Sergei Alexandrovich, who was murdered by an assassin in 1905.
During the Soviet years, the Novospassky Monastery was converted into the NKVD prison and a police drunk tank. Following the closure of the monastery, many graves and tombstones were defiled or destroyed. In the 1970s, it was used as an art restoration center. It was not until 1991 that the monastery was returned to the church.
© Paul Gilbert @ Royal Russia. 20 March, 2012
Updated: Tuesday, 20 March 2012 7:08 AM EDT
Permalink | Share This Post