Foros Church (Church of the Resurrection of Christ)

Passing along the southern serpentine of Crimea, heading from Yalta to Foros, you will notice a small white church with sparkling domes. It is located on a steep Red Rock, whose height exceeds 400 meters above sea level. This location of the Foros Church gives it the appearance of a shrine hovering above the clouds.

The history of the creation of the "heavenly" Foros church dates back to 1892. It was built with the funds of the famous Russian tea industrialist of that time - Alexander Grigoryevich Kuznetsov. There is a legend connected with the creation of the Foros Church. Once his daughter, descending to the sea, miraculously escaped death. The harnessed four horses lost their way and carried the crew down. The horses stopped at the very edge of the cliff. In this very place Alexander Kuznetsov built a temple. However, there is also a real history that precedes the construction of the church. In 1888, the train crashed with the royal family, but Alexander III and his family remained alive. The merchant was struck by this event, and he decided to erect a beautiful temple in honor of saving the sovereign. For this he invited the architect Nikolai Chagin and such famous artists as Konstantin Makovsky, Alexei Korzukhin and Nikolai Sverchkov. They were painting the interior of the Foros church. Frescoes were handled by experts of the Italian workshop Antonio Salvati.

Now the Foros Temple is open for visits. You can get to it by going out on the turn to the town of Foros. In the direction of the mountains, the road will lead - this is the old highway Baidarskie gates, which once connected Sevastopol and Yalta. The path to the church is not easy, especially if you walk. The best option is to book a taxi in Yalta or in Foros itself. Also, climbing to the church at a height of 400 meters, do not forget to bring warm clothes. Usually the temperature there is much lower than on the coast.

When you climb the Red Rock, you will see a small church with nine domes. The central head is bigger and higher than the rest, which gives the building a pyramidal shape. Foros temple has one feature - it's the shape of its dome. The architect used a drum to increase the dome space and cut through the windows. This increased the illumination of the church hall by daylight.

Go inside the temple and see how skilfully the walls are painted. The floor is fully decorated with mosaic, and for the sills, columns and panels, Carrara marble was used. Pay attention to the oak iconostasis, whose carving is made in the old Russian style. It is adorned with golden royal gates, on both sides of which are depicted the Mother of God and the face of Jesus Christ, and above them is a picture of the Last Supper.

Before the Foros temple there is an observation deck with a beautiful view of the coast. No less attractive church looks from below, especially in the evening, when it is lit by the lanterns installed in its facade.

To date, Foros church is considered the pearl of the Crimean peninsula, a small shrine among the clouds.