Cathedral of the Dormition of the Holy Virgin

The Cathedral of the Dormition of the Holy Virgin (also known as the Church of the Saviour on Hay) was built in the Haymarket (1753–65). The church had two main side-chapels – Chapel of the Three Prelates (1761) and Chapel of the Dormition (1765). Construction was financed by Savva Yakovlev, a wealthy owner of iron mines in the Ural Mountains. The high gilt iconostasis was considered one of the finest in St Petersburg. The cross of the main cupola was topped with a tsarist crown, in commemoration of the coronation of Catherine the Great, which coincided with the completion of construction work (1762). The Cathedral of the Dormition of the Holy Virgin was the first place of worship to greet Catherine II following her return to St Petersburg from her coronation in Moscow (1762). The church and bell-tower were redesigned at various times by Luigi Rusca, Abraham Melnikov and other architects (19th century). The Cathedral of the Dormition of the Holy Virgin was demolished to make way for an underground station (1961). Architectural excavation work began on the Haymarket with the aim of possibly restoring the church (2013).