The interior of a russian church.

Just as the type of church was taken over from Byzantium together with Orthodoxy, so was the system of arranging and decorating the interior. The arrival of the first Greek masters and the bringing of icons from Byzantium are often mentioned in the chronicles as events of great importance at that time. The most famous of all the Greek icons brought to Russia is undoubtedly the 12th-century "Our Lady of Vladimir" which subsequently became one of the most sacred relics of the Russian state (and is today in the Tretyakov Gallery's Church of St Nicholas). In mediaeval Russia, as in Byzantium, churches were decorated with mosaics (in the pre-Mongol period) or frescoes.

The oldest surviving frescoes on the territory of what was once Vladimir-Suzdalian Russia are to be found in the St Demetrius Cathedral in Vladimir. The church itself was seen as a model of the universe, an image of the world, and the system of frescoes was dictated by this idea. The dome, which symbolised

heaven, usually had a representation of Christ Pantocrator (Almighty) hovering over the universe, his hand raised in blessing. He was surrounded by archangels, cherubim and seraphim singing his praises. The drum was painted with Old Testament prophets. The triangular-shaped pendentives that effect the transition from the dome to the cube and appear visually to support the dome, bore the Evangelists, thanks to whom the gospel was spread to all four corners of the world. On the vaults there were usually scenes of Christ's earthly life and parables from the gospels. Lower down, on the walls, came the Mariological cycles and events connected with the saints to whom the church was dedicated. A most important section were the frescoes in the sanctuary, the images of the holy of holies. This section was dominated by the Virgin Mary who links heaven and earth and embodies the Church on earth.

Iconostasis.

From the late 14th century the iconostasis, a kind of wall of icons, began to play a particularly important role in the interior. It gradually grew higher until in the 16th century it concealed the sanctuary almost entirely from the congregation. The low sanctuary screen with a small number of icons came to Russia from Byzantium. As one of the interpreters of the symbolism of the Church of St Simeon of Salonica (15th century) wrote, the icons of the Saviour, the Virgin Mary, John the Baptist, the angels and saints arranged on the sanctuary screen symbolise Christ's dwelling in heaven with his saints and, at the same time, his presence here, among us.

The sanctuary screen gradually developed into the high iconostasis which can be seen as one of the finest creations of Russian theological thought. It embodied the full range of theological and aesthetic views. It originally consisted of three tiers, but a fourth was added in the 16th century, the prophet tier, and a fifth in the 17th, the forefathers tier. By the end of the 17th century some churches had iconostases with six, seven or even more tiers, containing icons of Christ's Passion. The iconostasis was crowned with a cross.

The top tier or row is the patriarch tier, containing the Old Testament forefathers. Immediately beneath it is the prophet tier with icons of the Old Testament prophets. The next row has the church feasts, which illustrate the fulfilment of the prophesies. And, finally, there is the Deisis tier (from the Greek word meaning "supplication") in which the saints intercede for mankind before the Saviour. There is Tzar (Holy) Gate in the centre. The system of painting in the church also has a prescribed arrangement that has developed over the centuries. The painting is intended to illustrate the Bible story and the various subjects are always arranged in a certain order. On the inside of the west wall there is traditionally a series of painting showing the famous icons.

Last Judgement. Inside the main dome is Christ the Almighty in various iconographical versions. The pillars are painted with the archangels or saints who are specially revered in that particular town.

An important role m the interior decoration of the church is played by the iconostasis, a wall of icons arranged in a prescribed order. In several cathedrals in the Golden Ring the iconostasis contains some very old and

In the middle of the bottom tier, known as the local tier, are the Royal Doors leading into the sanctuary, which are usually painted with the Annunciation at the top and the four Evangelists lower down on the panels (an older tradition has the compilers of the liturgy St John Crysostom and St Basil the Great). The Annunciation symbolised the dogma of the incarnation and marked the entrance to the sanctuary. The Royal Doors stood for the entrance to the Kingdom of Heaven. In the Orthodox liturgy the faithful partake of the body and blood of Christ in front of the Royal Doors. On the right of the doors next to the icon of the Saviour is one of the feast or saint to which the church is dedicated. On the left of the doors is an icon of the Virgin and Child in different iconographical versions, usually the Smolensk, Tikhvin or Vladimir iconography. The other icons in the local row are representations of particularly revered saints and feasts that sometimes have a special connection with the town or diocese in question. As well as the Royal Doors in the local tier, there are two side doors leading to the credence table and the diaconicon (vestry) respectively in the side sections of the sanctuary. These side doors are usually painted with archdeacons and archangels as co-priests in the celebrating of the Divine Liturgy. To understand the programme of the classic iconostasis, it is best viewed from above. The top tier or row is the patriarch tier, containing the Old Testament forefathers Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Noah, Abel and others. Immediately beneath it is the prophet tier with icons of the Old Testament prophets who foretold the coming of Christ and the future salvation of mankind. The next row has the church feasts, which illustrate the fulfilment of the prophesies – the birth of Christ and his life on earth culminating in his crucifixion. All the events shown in this tier are celebrated by the church as feasts, namely, the Nativity of the Virgin, the Annunciation, the Nativity of Christ, the Epiphany, the Transfiguration, the Entry into Jerusalem, the Raising of Lazarus, the Crucifixion, the Resurrection, the Descent into Hell and the Ascension. Their arrangement in the tier is in the order in which they take place in the gospel story. And, finally, there is the Deisis tier (from the Greek word meaning "supplication") in which the saints intercede for mankind before the Saviour. So the history of mankind is represented in the iconostasis from Adam, the first day of Creation, to the Last Judgement. Each of the tiers stands for a particular period of Divine history in the establishment of the Church on earth.