Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
days or a cherished relic. Descend past stony-faced guards into the dimly lit chasm where
theleader'sbodylies.Stoppingorgigglingwillearnyousternrebukes.BehindtheMauso-
leum, the
Kremlinwall
-19mhighand6.5mthick -contains a
massgrave
ofBolsheviks
who perished during the battle for Moscow in 1917. The ashes of an array of luminaries,
including writer Maxim Gorky and the first man in space, Yuri Gagarin, are here too. Bey-
ond lie the graves of a select group of Soviet leaders, each with his own bust; Stalin still
gets the most flowers.
St Basil's Cathedral
With its multicoloured onion domes silhouetted against the skyline where Red Square
slopes down towards the Moskva River,
St Basil
'
s Cathedral
(daily 11am-5pm; R250,
student R150;
saintbasil.ru
)
is perhaps the most instantly recognizable symbol of Russia.
The exterior is far more impressive than the interior, however, which consists of a stone
warren of small chapels and souvenir stalls. Built in 1561 to celebrate Ivan the Terrible's
capture of the Tatar stronghold of Kazan in 1552, its name commemorates St Basil the
Blessed, who foretold the fire that swept through Moscow in 1547.
The Kremlin
Brooding and glittering in the heart of the capital, the
Kremlin
(Aleksandrovsky Sad;
historical Moscow and home to its present-day parliament, the Duma. Its founding is at-
tributed to Prince Yuriy Dolgorukiy, who built a wooden fort here in about 1147. Look out
for the
Tsar Cannon
, cast in 1586: one of the largest cannons ever made, and intended to
defend the Saviour Gate, it has never been fired. Close by looms the earthbound, broken
Tsar Bell
, the largest bell in the world, cast in 1655.
Cathedral Square
is the historic
heart of the Kremlin, dominated by the magnificent, white
Ivan the Great Bell Tower
.
Of the square's four key churches, the most important is the
Cathedral of the Assump-
tion
,withaspacious,lightandechoinginterior,wallsandpillarssmotheredwithiconsand
frescoes, and temporary exhibitions housed in its belfry. The
Cathedral of the Archangel
houses the tombs of Russia's rulers from Grand Duke Ivan I to Tsar Ivan V, while the
golden-domed
CathedraloftheAnnunciation
hidessomeofRussia'sfinesticons,includ-
ing works by Theophanes the Greek and Andrey Rublev.
