Kremlin & Kitay Gorod - Moscow - page 123

Patriarch's Palace
Patriarch's Palace ( MAP GOOGLE MAP ) was mostly built in the mid-17th century for Pat-
riarch Nikon, whose reforms sparked the break with the Old Believers. Now quiet, the
palace in its heyday was a busy place. Apart from the Patriarch's living quarters, it had huge
kitchens, warehouses and cellars stocked with food, workshops, a school for high-born chil-
dren, offices for scribes, dormitories for those waiting to be baptised, stables and carriage
houses.
The palace now contains an exhibit of 17th-century household items, including jewellery,
hunting equipment and furniture. Patriarch's Palace often holds special exhibits , which can
be visited individually, without access to the other buildings on Sobornaya pl.
Church of the Twelve Apostles
From inside the Patriarch's Palace, you can access the five-domed Church of the Twelve
Apostles ( MAP GOOGLE MAP ) . The pretty little chapel contains a gilded wooden icono-
stasis and a collection of icons by leading 17th-century icon painters.
Cross Hall
The highlight of the Patriarch's Palace is perhaps the ceremonial Cross Hall (), where feasts
for the tsars and ambassadors were held. From the 18th century the room was used to pro-
duce miro (a holy oil used during church services, which contains over 30 herbal compon-
ents); the oven and huge pans from the production process are on display.