Church of the Holy Martyrs Florus and Laurus on Zatsepa in Moscow. The area in Zamoskvorechye, around the current Dubininskaya Street, 9, was called Yamskaya Sloboda in the 16th century. It arose after the construction of the walls of Zemlyanoy Val here in 1593 and the resettlement of coachmen here from the settlement of the same name in the Moscow Polyanka district.

An invariable attribute of any settlement was the church, built in honor of the patron saints of the main part of the population of these communities.

The choice of Saints Florus and Laurus for the Yamskaya Sloboda is not accidental. They are the patrons of all domestic animals, and in particular horses. The day of veneration of saints, August 18 (31), was sometimes called the “horse holiday.”

Photo 1. Church of the Holy Martyrs Florus and Laurus on Zatsepa in Moscow

Church history

The first mention of a wooden church on the site of the current temple dates back to 1642. Then it was called the temple of the great apostles Peter and Paul in Kolomenskaya Yamskaya Sloboda. In honor of the martyrs Florus and Laurus, a chapel was built in it and the people called it nothing more than “the Church of Florus and Laurus on Zatsep”.

In 1738, there was a fire in the church, due to which it completely burned out. The local community asked permission to build it out of stone.

The current temple was built in parts. The main part of the construction work was completed in 1778. In 1835, a refectory, side chapels and a bell tower, made in the Empire style, were added.

The Church of the Martyrs Florus and Laurus in Zamoskvorechye acquired its modern appearance in 1862. It was then that his consecration took place.

The final touch to the architectural appearance of the temple was an extension for the sacristy, erected in its western part.

Photo 2. Memorial plaque on the Church of the Icon of the Mother of God on Dubininskaya, 9

Temple after the revolution and today

After the October Revolution, the Zatsepsky Church was turned into a warehouse for church valuables. They were brought here from places of worship in Moscow that were subject to demolition or closure. This is how the icon of the Holy Great Martyr Catherine and the miraculous icon of the Savior from the Catherine Church appeared here, located on Bolshaya Ordynka and in the Panteleimon Chapel, respectively.

In 1922, the values ​​of the temple itself were expropriated, and a huge Zatsepsky market was set up near its walls.

It is interesting to note that the reports of the commission on the confiscation of temple utensils used the weight indicators of the confiscated property in the Temple of Florus and Laurus on Zatsep (the weight of the confiscated was 28 pounds 24 pounds 66 spools and 26 diamonds), and not the natural inventory of objects in such cases.

Archpriest Nikolai (Vinogradov), the rector of the temple, was arrested in 1933 for “anti-Soviet agitation.” In 1937 he was shot. The Russian Orthodox Church canonized Father Nicholas in August 2000, and November 14 is considered his memorial day.

Photo 3. Holy Martyrs Peter and Paul

In 1938, the church building was handed over to the so-called renovationists, but due to low attendance, the authorities decided to close the religious facility. This happened in 1940.

The year 1950 became a black page in the history of the Temple of Florus and Laurus on Zatsep in Zamoskvorechye: the dome above the dome was dismantled, and the bell tower was simply blown up after failure to dismantle the structure using picks and crowbars. True, the explosion managed to destroy only the upper part of the belfry.

In the now former temple, a metallography factory was set up for the production of stamp and engraving products.

In 1960, the temple building was recognized as a historical architectural monument, but the authorities were in no hurry to remove the industrial facility.

Interesting fact. On the territory of the temple, until 1992, there was a turning circle and the beginning of the route of the most famous Moscow tram with the letter “A”. “Annushka,” as Muscovites affectionately called it, connected the Zatsepa district with Krasnopresnensky Boulevard.

Due to the dismantling of the rails, the famous route was closed and restored only in 1997 on the occasion of the 850th anniversary of the capital. True, “Annushka” now runs from Chistye Prudy to the Kaluzhskaya Square area.

In 1991, the city authorities transferred the temple to the Orthodox Church, and on April 7, services resumed here.

The main altar of the returned church was consecrated in honor of the icon of the Mother of God "Joy of All Who Sorrow", the northern aisle - in the name of the Great Martyrs Florus and Laurus, and the southern aisle - in honor of the Apostles Peter and Paul.

The restoration work was largely completed by the end of the 1990s, and the last stage was the installation of 3 bells weighing one and a half, three and 5 tons on the bell tower. They were consecrated, as well as the wall mosaic with the faces of the holy apostles Peter and Paul, by Archbishop Alexander of Dmitrov.

The Temple (Church) of the Holy Martyrs Florus and Laurus on Zatsepa (Icon of the Mother of God “Joy of All Who Sorrow”) is located at: Moscow, Dubininskaya, 9, building 1 (metro station “Paveletskaya”).

I went to this temple on the way to the Paveletskaya metro station, returning along Dubininskaya Street from the Spanish visa center. I wanted to quickly fulfill the order of my neighbor Lena in Didim, who asked me before I left for Moscow to submit notes to the church commemorating her loved ones: her father and grandmother. (In Turkey we do not have this opportunity).
In the Church of the Holy Martyrs Florus and Laurus on Zatsepa it was quiet and there were almost no parishioners.
This was my first time in this temple, although I had often passed by it in recent years.
Having fulfilled my friend’s request, I decided to take a closer look at the church, took several photographs of the interior, and then saw a memorial stand dedicated to the rector of the church, who died exactly a year ago in February 2012.

Archpriest Alexy Tikhonovich Zotov (March 10, 1930 - February 12, 2012) zamos.ru/dossier/z/8571/ was the oldest clergyman in our city. He was also at the origins of the revival of the Church of Florus and Laurus on Zatsepa, accepting the parish in December 1990 and until the last days of his life he served in this temple.
During the first years I had to serve under the roar of machines, but the priest was grateful to the factory for preserving the walls.
“If it weren’t for the factory, the temple would have been destroyed,” Fr. constantly said. Alexy.
Under the leadership of the priest, the temple came to life before our eyes. A lot of garbage was removed
They tried to return the temple to its original appearance. Instead of doors cut into the altar, windows appeared. When Fr. Alexia, the destroyed bell tower was restored, new iconostases and mosaics appeared on the facade of the temple. The first service took place on Easter, April 6, 1991. His Holiness Patriarch Alexy II, who arrived on this day, inspected the church and the territory. And exactly 6 years later, having arrived, His Holiness noted: “And this temple has been reborn.”

Archpriest Alexy Zotov is known not only in Moscow, but throughout Russia.
They say that he was a very worthy person, and even after death he helps people in trouble if they turn to him with prayer (in my presence, a church minister advised a parishioner to turn to him with a prayer for help).
I wanted to know the history of the temple, since I was born in Zamoskvorechye in a maternity hospital on Shchipok Street and lived not far from Paveletskaya Square on Pyatnitskaya Street Pyatnitskaya Street of my childhood.

On the website “Moscow in Churches” I found the following information:
“The Temple of Florus and Laurus on Zatsep takes its name from one of the chapels dedicated to the holy brothers. The main altar of this church is consecrated in honor of the icon of the Mother of God “Joy of All Who Sorrow.”
On Zatsepa (the name is associated with the customs house located here in the 17th – 18th centuries, which “hooked” carts to collect duties) in the 16th century. Kolomenskaya Yamskaya Sloboda was located. The wooden church in this place in Moscow was first mentioned in sources from 1642. Its main altar was then consecrated in the name of St. ap. Peter and Paul, and the chapel is in honor of St. Flora and Laurel, patrons of horses (generally domestic animals). Well, who should we pray for help to the coachmen, if not these saints? Their memorial day, August 18 (31), was sometimes even called the “horse” holiday. So, the people called the church that way: the Temple of Florus and Laurus on Zatsep.
A fire in 1738 severely damaged the church building, which the local community decided to rebuild in stone. The construction of the church took place in parts and was finally completed only by 1778. The main altar was consecrated in honor of the Mother of God icon “Joy of All Who Sorrow,” and the chapel, as before, in honor of Florus and Laurus.

In 1835 – 1836 The temple was significantly rebuilt in the Empire style (a powerful domed rotunda on an Ionic cube with porticoes) according to the design of the architect K. Ordenov. The second chapel was consecrated in honor of the apostles Peter and Paul. In 1861 – 1862 the building is being renovated, and at the beginning of the twentieth century. they make an extension for the sacristy without disturbing the main style.

The temple remained unchanged until the end of the 30s of the twentieth century.
After the revolution, all kinds of valuables from churches scheduled for closure and demolition began to be brought here. In 1922, 28 pounds of church valuables were confiscated from the Church of Florus and Laurus.
In 1938, the building was transferred to the Renovation Church, which was not particularly popular among the people. So, due to low attendance, the temple was finally closed.
In the 1950s, the dome and upper tiers of the bell tower were dismantled, and the building itself was transferred to an engraving factory, which housed a production workshop in it, destroying some of the wall paintings and painting over the remaining ones.
The year 1960 became very favorable for the temple, since it was in this year that the building was recognized as a historical and architectural monument, which protected it from further destruction, but did not save it from industrial production inside the walls. The metallographic factory continued to operate.
Believers regained the temple only in 1991. Then, on the Feast of the Annunciation (April 7), the first liturgy was served and work immediately began on preparations for restoration.
In 1997, the dome and bell tower were finally restored. The main altar was consecrated in honor of the icon of the Mother of God “Joy of All Who Sorrow”, the northern aisle - in the name of the Great Martyr. Flora and Lavra, and the southern one - in honor of St. ap. Peter and Paul. Despite this, the church, as in the old days, continues to be called the Temple of Florus and Laurus in the Yamskaya Kolomenskaya Sloboda on Zatsepa."
Read more.

There is a restored Temple of Florus and Laurus on Zatsep, a minute’s walk from the Paveletsky station (it’s better to go from the Paveletskaya radial). It doesn't immediately catch your eye. You never know how many churches in the Empire style are there in the capital! However, I recommend taking a look inside.

I am not a religious scholar or a theologian, the description is purely amateurish.

There are three altars in the church: the martyrs Florus and Laurus, the apostles Peter and Paul, and the icon of the Mother of God “Joy of All Who Sorrow.”

The name “Florus and Laurel on the Hook” is popular because in honor of these great martyrs one of the temple’s boundaries was illuminated. The correct name of the object is the Temple of the Icon of the Mother of God “Joy of All Who Sorrow” on Zatsep. There is a so-called in the temple. “list” of this one of the most revered icons in Orthodoxy, i.e. very roughly speaking - a copy of a particularly revered icon.

Icon of the Mother of God "Joy of All Who Sorrow"

And the name “Zatsepa” comes from ancient times, when the border of Moscow passed at the station, and special guards came out of their booths, removed the chain and let through the carts that had passed the inspection. That's how Hook became Hook.

Like all ancient temples, the history of this one is rich in events. Built at the end of the 16th century, it burned during the fire of 1738, when all of Moscow was made of wood and burst into flames from any dropped candle. Then the temple was rebuilt in stone and it received its usual appearance. The “ship” type of construction combines the temple itself, a bell tower and a refectory located on the same line. The altar traditionally “looks” to the east (towards the supposed heaven), and the entrance is located from the west (where hell is located). It is on the western wall that the Last Judgment scene is located. You can stay with her for a long time.

In fact, the temple is so interestingly and lovingly painted that it looks more like a museum. You can watch and feel the skill of the artists. By the way, the restoration of this temple received state approval. award quite recently, if my memory serves me correctly. Because, of course, all we see is a remake. After the revolution, valuables from the bombed Moscow churches, including the destroyed Cathedral of Christ the Savior, were stored here. In the 30s, the rector of the temple of Florus and Laurus was shot, and an art workshop for engraving work was set up in the premises, dumping waste under the foundation. Nothing remains of the original painting. Therefore, the restoration began from scratch. And now this is a place with completely clean energy, without stuffiness and the smell of incense, with an abundance of light and space. It's comfortable inside. There are benches for those who cannot stand for long. Well, the parishioners create energy, as always, not only by asking for something and repenting, but also by thanking for everything that can be considered good.

Despite the general novelty of the temple, there are rare icons here that were created before the system of icon painting that is familiar to us was established.

For example, the icon of the great martyrs Florus and Laurus. These Roman mason brothers in the 2nd century AD. worked on the creation of a pagan temple, although they themselves were hidden Christians.

Having converted their colleagues to Christianity, Florus and Laurus burned the idols prepared for transfer to the temple. For which they were punished - they were buried alive. When the relics were found many years later, they were untouched. And after the discovery of the relics in Rus', they ended the massacre of livestock. Since then, Flor and Laurus have been the patrons of animals, especially horses.

Traditional sacraments are performed in the temple. Among which is baptism. Here (one of the few in Moscow), to the left of the entrance, in a special room there is a baptistery font, into which adults who have consciously converted to Christianity and decided not to limit themselves to three-time sprinkling can fully immerse themselves.

Traditionally, photography is not blessed in the temple. I'm glad I managed to get permission. I hope this will give you a more complete picture of this place. Because it definitely deserves attention. Rich history, convenient location and comfort make the Temple of Florus and Laurus warm and somehow homely. It’s clean here, they sell candles, everything is the same as everywhere else.

During the years of Soviet power, more than three hundred and thirty churches were demolished in Moscow. There are three hundred and thirty-four listed on the Internet. Thirteen of them are in the Kremlin alone.
Among them is the oldest temple in Moscow - built in 1300 - the Savior on Bor.

Today I will tell you only about three of these demolished temples. By the way, there is hope that two of them will be restored - since the place where they stood remained undeveloped.

One of these churches stood in this place, on the corner of Myasnitskaya Street and Bobrova Lane. The lane is named after a seventeenth-century merchant nicknamed Beaver. In the seventeenth century, on the site of house No. 21 on Myasnitskaya, his chambers were located.

Then this plot was acquired by Ivan Ilyich Dmitriev-Mamonov, a prominent figure of Peter’s time, a general, participant in the Battle of Poltava. He was married in a morganatic marriage to the daughter of Tsar Ivan Alekseevich - Praskovya Ioannovna.

Ivan Ilyich Dmitriev Mamonov was buried near the Church of Florus and Laurus.

Here is how Moscow historian Alexei Fedorovich Malinovsky wrote about this church:

“Frol and Lavra with the chapel of the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul at the Myasnitsky Gate, which, by decree of April 1658, 16, was ordered to be called Frolovsky, and the street - Frolovskaya, but the former customary name of both the gate and the street has been retained to this day. The church is low-lying. , rough Gothic architecture, with five round domes, and the bell tower is pyramidal, in the inventory of 1620 it is listed as wooden, and [aut. omission] years later it was built by the stable boyar [aut. omission] stone.”

As we can see, Malinovsky described this church rather disparagingly. However, this was the only temple of Florus and Laurus in Moscow - and for this alone it was unique. There was also a temple of these saints in the coachmen's settlement on Zatsepa (now the Paveletsky station area), but in 1628 the main altar of the church was already consecrated in honor of Peter and Paul, and later it was reconsecrated in the name of the icon of the Mother of God "Joy of All Who Sorrow." In this church there was only a throne in the name of Florus and Laurus - it is in this church even now.

Saints Flor and Laurus in Rus' were considered patrons of horses. It’s interesting that it was Malinovsky who wrote (and I couldn’t find this information from anyone else) that there were the sovereign’s stables on Myasnitskaya near the Church of Florus and Laurus. And the Stable Yard in the Kremlin - writes Malinovsky - was built under Tsar Theodore II (son of Boris Godunov) - and was then called the Argamachi Yard.

The Kremlin's Spasskaya Tower was previously called Frolovskaya. Malinovsky writes that this Kremlin tower has been called Frolovskaya since the time of Dmitry Donskoy. Apparently, under Donskoy, the first Church of Florus and Laurus was built in the Kremlin - near the gate. There, probably, there was then a princely stable settlement. (The Spasskaya Tower became after Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich placed on it the image of the Savior Not Made by Hands and gave a Decree of April 16, 1658, where he ordered the Frolovskaya Tower to be called Spasskaya).

Apparently, Tsar Ivan the Terrible moved the settlement from the Kremlin to the Myasnitsky Gate. At least, there is evidence that it was Grozny who moved the Church of Florus and Laurus to the Myasnitsky Gate - then still, of course, wooden. But - since Malinovsky - whose words we cannot but trust - writes that the Church of Florus and Laurus had the sovereign's stables - it is logical to assume that they were moved here along with the temple - by order of Tsar John the First (Fourth). And then they were transferred back to the Kremlin - by order of Theodore II; but the temple was no longer moved, and stood in this place until 1935. In 1935, the first line of the Moscow metro was laid - and during the construction of the Chistye Prudy station - the Church of Flora and Laurus was demolished. Valentin Kataev, in his book “My Diamond Crown,” wrote: “This church suddenly seemed to… disappear, turned into a plank barracks at the Metrostroy concrete plant, forever covered with a layer of greenish cement dust.”

Metro workers who lived in this barracks discovered an underground passage in the floor. Rumors spread about the discovery of a Moscow treasure. But the course quickly fell asleep, and the rumors stopped. So still nothing is known about him.

The Church of Florus and Laurus was famous for the fact that horses were brought to it from all over Russia - on the horse holiday - August 18 (30) - the Day of Saints Florus and Laurus. On this day, the horses were sprinkled with holy water and a prayer service was served for their health. “I begged Flora and Laurus - expect good things for the horses!” - people said. Florus and Laurus are Christian brothers of the 2nd century who lived in Illyricum. They were stonemasons. As stonemasons, the brothers were involved in the construction of a pagan temple in Constantinople. Florus and Laurus persuaded other workers to destroy the pagan idols and erect the Cross in their place. The brothers were thrown alive into a well and covered with earth. After some time, livestock began to die in Constantinople. And from a forgotten well a spring gushed out. The water of this source turned out to be healing for sick animals. The well was dug up, and the brothers’ relics were found incorrupt. Flora and Laurus were canonized as Christian saints, and they became patrons of livestock. And in Russia they were revered primarily as patrons of horses.

In this temple - Flora and Lavra - made of stone since 1657 - there were images of ancient sages - Plato, Aristotle and Solon. Similar images are found only in the Annunciation Cathedral of the Moscow Kremlin - the home church of the Russian tsars, and also in the Transfiguration Cathedral of the Novospassky Monastery.

In general, in this modest church by Moscow standards - Flora and Lavra on Myasnitskaya - there was some kind of mystery. And an underground passage, and images that are characteristic of royal temples. (Novospassky Monastery is the burial place of the Romanov boyars, the Romanov burial vault. In particular, the nun Dosifeya - Princess Tarakanova is buried there).

It is a great pity that Moscow has lost this unique temple. It would be nice to see it restored. But - of course - it will be just a “remake”... But still, it is better and more correct for the temple of Florus and Laurus to stand in this place - for many centuries in a row - than for the clumsy and the ugly building of the Alexander Kalyagin Theater with a pretentious - in my opinion - name: “Et cetera...”.

*The porch of the Transfiguration Cathedral, like the entire temple, is entirely painted with images. Of these, the most remarkable are the images of 10 ancient Greek philosophers on both sides at the entrance to the porch on the eastern side. All of them have in their hands scrolls with some kind of saying written out. On the right side are depicted: Orpheus, Homer, Solon, Plato and Ptolemy, on the left are Hermias, Anacharis, Aristotle, Plutarch and Herodion. /History of the Novospassky Monastery and its connection with the Romanovs. M. Markabov, candidate of physical and mathematical sciences.

No, alas! Kalyagin won! The second building of the Et cetera theater is being built on the site of the Temple.

In his address - also to Yu.M. The artist wrote to Luzhkov: how, they say, can it be consistent that a funeral service for a deceased person will be held in a church, and a comedy will be played in a theater?

And now the comedy will be played right over the cemetery burial, over the hero of the Battle of Poltava I.I. Dmitriev-Mamonov, who was buried at the Temple of Florus and Laurus, and over many other dead people. It's nothing. This is consistent!..

Apparently, this temple will not be restored. The theatrical grabbers won.

Figs, I will now listen and watch the best number of the artist Kalyagin - the song of “Charley’s Aunt” to the words of Robert Burns! Now I don’t believe him. “Have love and poverty forever (him) been caught in a net?..” Don’t be ridiculous! Robert Burns and I are now separate, and the theater businessmen who do not respect Russian (and therefore any) culture are separate.

Ill.: A.M. Vasnetsov. Myasnitskaya street. Near the Myasnitsky Gate. (On the left is the Temple of Florus and Laurus.)

Who are Flor and Laurus?

According to the life, the brothers Flor and Laurus are Christian martyrs who lived in the 2nd century in the Roman province of Illyria (the territory of modern Albania and Croatia). The Orthodox and Catholic churches honor their memory on August 31 (old style, 18).

The young men who converted to Christianity became famous as skilled masons and preachers of the new faith. For the destruction of pagan idols for the temple they built, the local ruler ordered Florus and Laurus to be thrown into a well and covered with earth. In the Middle Ages, Christians found the incorrupt relics of the brothers and transferred them to Constantinople; there is information that Russian pilgrims saw them in the 13th-14th centuries.

According to legend, the discovery of the relics of Florus and Laurus was accompanied by a miracle: the death of livestock stopped in the vicinity. This is probably why in Rus' these saints were considered the patrons of animals, especially horses. Some ancient Russian canons even emphasize that horses should be depicted on their icons, although there is no such information in the lives and foreign sources. Another interesting detail concerns the names of saints: Flora was more often called Frol, and Lavra - Laver or Laver.

Popularity in Rus'

Flora and Lavra were highly respected by peasants and coachmen. On the day of remembrance of the saints, they did not work on the horses; they fed them to the full, bathed and cleaned them. Housewives baked special cookies with the image of a horse's hoof. The horses were decorated with flowers and ribbons and led to the church, where the priests sprinkled them with holy water. There are well-known Russian sayings: “I begged Frol and Laurus - expect good things for the horses”; “Frol and Laver are as good as a workhorse.”

People's love for these saints can also be judged from fiction. For example, the prayer of the hero of the epic novel “War and Peace,” soldier Platon Karataev, sounded like this: “Lord, Jesus Christ, St. Nicholas, Frol and Lavra, Lord Jesus Christ, St. Nicholas! Frol and Lavra, Lord Jesus Christ - have mercy and save us! - he concluded, bowed to the ground, stood up and, sighing, sat down on his straw. Another example from the classics, already Soviet: the priest Father Fyodor, a character in the novel “The Twelve Chairs” by Ilf and Petrov, served in the Church of Florus and Laurus.

But the main indicator of the popularity of saints is the number of buildings bearing their name. According to some data, at the beginning of the 20th century in Russia there were about 250 chapels, churches and temples consecrated in their honor or with chapels of Florus and Laurus. There were five of them in Moscow alone:

- two with chapels - the Church of the Three Saints on Kulishki (Maly Trekhsvyatitelsky Lane, building 4/6) and the Church of the Life-Giving Trinity at the Ermakovskaya almshouse (Korolenko Street, building 2/23; currently inactive);

- three named - the Church of Flora and Lavra at the Ermakovsky Technical School (Prechistenskaya embankment, building 11), the Church of Flora and Lavra at the Myasnitsky Gate (destroyed in 1935) and the Church of Flora and Lavra on Zatsepa, in Zamoskvorechye (Dubininskaya street, building 9, building 1).

There is a legend that the Church of Florus and Laurus stood near the walls of the Kremlin, which is why the gate was called Frolovsky. The church was allegedly moved to Myasnitskaya Sloboda on the orders of Ivan the Terrible, and in the middle of the 17th century an icon of the Savior Not Made by Hands was placed above the gate, and Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich ordered to call them Spassky. And from the church in Myasniki Moscow, Frolov Lane remained as a memory.

History of the Church on Zatsepa

According to one version, the name of Zatsepy Street, located next to the Paveletsky Station, means “behind the chain.” At the end of the 17th century, Zemlyanoy Gorod, which later became the Garden Ring, was a customs border, and there was a guard post where all carts entering the capital were stopped and inspected. Gradually, the name became part of a number of toponyms - the names of a square, rampart, dead end and several passages.

The current Dubininskaya street received this name only in 1922, and before it was Kolomenskaya-Yamskaya. The first part indicates that the Kolomna tract began from Zatsepa, and the second - that the Yamskaya settlement was located here, one of several in the city. It moved here from Polyanka at the end of the 16th century. It was thanks to the coachmen that the Church of Florus and Laurus, then still wooden, appeared on this site in 1625. It stood for a little more than a century, and in 1738 it burned down.

At the request of local parishioners, a year later a stone church was erected here, but under a different name - it was consecrated in honor of the icon of the Mother of God “Joy of All Who Sorrow.” In 1835, its bell tower, aisles and refectory were rebuilt in the Empire style, and in 1861-1862, the main volume (quadrangle) was rebuilt. In 1909, the church expanded to include western vestibules (extensions).

After the revolution, the temple turned into a kind of warehouse for church valuables: icons, shrines and utensils were brought here from all over Moscow, including from the Cathedral of Christ the Savior. Services were held irregularly, and in 1937 they practically stopped, because the rector, Archpriest Nikolai Vinogradov, was arrested and shot “for anti-Soviet agitation.” In 1938, the temple was finally closed, and it acquired unusual functions: judging by the archives of the Moscow City Council, part of the premises was occupied by a club for the blind, which in 1940 leased the area to a zoo plant.

After some time, a metallographic and engraving factory was located in the former church. The production turned out to be harmful in every sense: some wall paintings were destroyed, others were painted over, and the remains of the decor suffered from acid-base fumes and equipment vibration. The tram ring around the temple also contributed: tram A, the famous “Annushka,” turned around here.

The building has changed a lot inside and out: partitions and interfloor ceilings have appeared in it, and the head of the dome has disappeared. In 1957, they tried to blow up the bell tower, but the base stood, only the upper tiers collapsed. There is a version that the material from which they were made turned... into a festive decoration: crushed bricks were sprinkled on some streets in honor of the VI International Festival of Youth and Students. However, maybe this is one of the urban legends.

In 1960, the building was belatedly recognized as an architectural monument and came under state protection, but only nominally: production remained in place. The factory began to be moved to a building on Zhukovy Proezd (house 21) only in 1989, but the workshops continued to operate for several more years. In January 1991, the city officially transferred the temple building to the Russian Orthodox Church, and on April 7, Easter, a service was held there after a long break. It is noteworthy that the chapel of the holy martyrs Florus and Laurus was the first to be consecrated. And now the church bears two names - the Church of the Icon of the Mother of God “Joy of All Who Sorrow” and the Church of Florus and Laurus on Zatsep.

Long-awaited restoration

Research and design studies for the restoration of the temple began back in 1978. By 1985, a plan for the restoration of the bell tower and the main building appeared, but its implementation began only ten years later. The Patriarchate of the Russian Orthodox Church received the building “in unsatisfactory technical condition” and, by decision of the City Council, had to carry out repair and restoration work at its own expense. Recovery was slow and interrupted many times.

In 2015, the church was included in the city program for supporting cultural heritage sites. The city provided the Patriarchate with a targeted subsidy. The work took a year and a half - from June 2015 to December 2016.

The restoration affected all elements of the building:

- facade - the dome and cross, the light drum, the rotunda and porticos, the northern and southern porches (including stone steps) were updated, the stucco decoration was recreated, protective plaster was applied;

- dome - a unique system of wooden rafters was recreated, hydro- and vapor barrier and insulation of the brickwork of the vault were carried out;

- interior - most of the wooden parts in the main entrance and vestibule were replaced, in the temple itself floors were made of stone slabs (instead of wooden covering);

- engineering systems - water and heat supply to the building has been organized, electricity and telephony have been established, domestic sewerage has been installed, and lightning protection has been installed.

The Moscow government recognized that all work was carried out at a high professional level and awarded the project managers with a competition award. Thus, the restoration of the Temple of Florus and Laurus, which formally began almost 40 years ago, was completed.

Used sources

1. St. Muchch. Flora and Lavra // Lives of saints revered by the Russian Orthodox Church, as well as revered by the Greek Church, South Slavic, Georgian and locally revered in Russia. - No. 7-8: July - August / D.I. Protopopov. — M.: D.I. Presnov, 1885. - P. 289-291.
2. Romanyuk S.K. Lanes of old Moscow. Story. Architectural monuments. Routes. M., 2016. pp. 259-260.
3. Tolstoy L.N. Full composition of writings. — T. 12: War and Peace. T. 4. - M.: Fiction, 1940. - P. 47-48.
4. TSGAM: F.179. Op. 20. D. 2570. L. 20.
5. Decision of the executive committee of the Moscow City Council of Workers No. 1016 of May 19, 1940. TSGAM. F. R-150, Op. 1, D. 623, L. 114.
6. Architectural monuments of Moscow under state protection. Moscow, 1980. P. 68.
7. Decision of the executive committee of the Moscow City Council of People's Deputies No. 1225 of June 22, 1989. TSGAM: F. R-150, Op. 1, D. 6430, L. 210-211.
8. Decision of the executive committee of the Moscow City Council of People's Deputies No. 27 of 01/08/1991. TSGAM: F. R-150, Op. 1, D. 6627, L. 368-369.

Documents provided by the Main Archival Department of the city of Moscow.