Blagoveshchenskaya Tserkov'

During excavations in the Church of the Annunciation on the Settlement in Novgorod, Russian archaeologists found a large number of graffiti inscriptions of the first half of the 12th century, among them there was also a kind of wall “chronicle”, which, according to scientists, is the longest verb in Russia, TASS reports. Where is it all now ?? Why are they silent ?? Everywhere ti-shi-na! In fact, this is a sensation!

In the Novgorod chronicles there is a mention of the Settlement in 1103 in connection with the construction by order of Prince Mstislav (son of Vladimir Monomakh) of the Annunciation Cathedral (Church of the Annunciation at the Settlement). It was the second stone building after the St. Sophia Cathedral, built fifty years before it, on the Novgorod land. Built at the beginning of the 12th century, the Annunciation Church was comparable in size to the Sofia Cathedral in Veliky Novgorod, it had three apses and a staircase tower. Unlike the St. Sophia Cathedral, which was the cathedral and city-wide, the Church of the Annunciation wore a "court" character. However, due to decay in 1340, at the behest of the Grand Duke of Moscow Simeon Proud, the church was dismantled and in 1342-1342 in its place, but with some displacement, a new Church of the Annunciation was built partly on the old foundation. However, the new church was significantly smaller in size, with one apse, and the old foundation went beyond it. But by the end of the 18th century this church also decayed and was rebuilt in 1797, and in 1806 a porch with a small stone bell tower was added to the western wall of the church. In 1882, the porch and bell tower were rebuilt again. The Church of the Annunciation remained active until 1930, when it was closed during the period of the Stalinist anti-religious company. In 1941, during World War II, it was destroyed as a result of the shelling of the German army. There are only ruins in the form of dilapidated walls. At present, there is virtually no village Gorodishchi. Only the ruins of the Church of the Annunciation and the small village cemetery located next to it remained from the former Settlement. The ruins of the church stood from the moment of destruction to the present. Actually, we were there in August 2015, when the ruins remained as they were. Below among the photos there are two pictures of the ruins of the Church in August 2015. By 2019, the ruins were mothballed with the possibility of a guided tour. If it is easier to say, then the destroyed parts of the side walls were laid with a stone, making aisles inward. The ceiling is made of glass, something like a glass cover, placed on top of the walls, so there is plenty of light inside. Now it is a branch of the museum. In front of the main entrance there is a rather long bridge over the old foundation (which extends beyond the 14th century building). Inside, there’s really nothing to look at, the only thing is the old walls. There are no exhibits there. Along the walls along the perimeter such scaffoldings of the balcony type for walking of people are made. In the center there are four columns and at the bottom are found stone fragments of the floor, apparently still from the church of the first construction. You can watch a ten-minute such reference film about the Settlement. Perhaps that's all. It is such a pleasure 150 rubles per adult. Relative to the volume of services provided, in fact, a bit too much. The museum, by the way, does not work on Thursday and Friday. In general, the place is quite deaf. From the amenities there is a souvenir stall and toilet, but there are no cafes or even any places to eat. In the summer, especially in sunny weather, there are beautiful views of the opposite shore, the Yuryevsky monastery. In winter, there is nothing special to do there. There are some plans for the arrangement and development of the territory. But the implementation of these plans, apparently, is a long-term perspective.

Cradle of Russia, what else can I add .... calm, quiet, elevated place, with a wonderful view of the river and magnificent sunset pictures. It is definitely worth a visit for everyone who came to Veliky Novgorod.