The Mosaic Magic of St Isaacs Cathedral – St. Petersburg
(4 min read) St. Petersburg is home to some of the biggest Christian Orthodox churches in Eastern Europe, housing a glittering array of lustrous artwork, incredible architecture and biblical scenes depictions.
St Isaacs Cathedral is by far the largest and most world-renowned for its stunning mosaic décor. The gorgeous, classic, decorative wall art that envelopes the interior of St Isaacs actually inspired the revival of mosaic art in Russia in the 19th Century, adding up to 62 separate masterpieces in total, covering 500 square meters!
The bottom level of St Isaacs is adorned with mosaics based on sketches by T. A Neff; depicting linen-robed saints and famous, dramatic biblical scenes among its grand gold pillars and marble walls.
The second tier of the cathedral focuses on the “Passions of Christ” and the four evangelists.
The mosaic replacements were an ingenious way to re-imagine classic church art, the holy scenes could be reconceptualized. Placing tile and smelt where oil paint used to reside protected the mural art from fading, and water damage and surged the interior with a unique style.
A beautiful example of this mosaic replacement is the portrayal of “The Last Supper”; referenced with sketches from mosaic artists I.P Kudrin, the decorative wall art is gorgeously renaissance, echoing Leonardo Da Vinci’s own conceptualization of the biblical scene.
To achieve the wonderfully rich color palate; a complex series of techniques were used; small pieces of colored Smalti in over 12 000 colors were used to achieve the rich color gradients in the skin and metallic tones, creases in clothing and lighting effects, meticulously placed to achieve a perfect effect when viewed from afar. A similar effect can be seen in more complex pixelated art which comes together to form a gradient when viewed at a distance, regardless of its individual tiles.
The decorative wall art in St Isaac’s is renowned for its perfection, the quality of craftsmanship involved granted it high praise in the 1862 World Exhibition; in London; where it was noted that the Russians “reached perfection in the making of Smalti unmatched elsewhere in Europe”.
When we look at the incredibly intricate portrayal of biblical mosaic fresco, we see blood under sheer skin, glistening eyes, deep textures in fine robes; the work of true mosaic mastery.
Are you feeling inspired to enrich your soul with the decorative wall art of orthodox Eastern Europe?
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60 Comments
Wow!! What a beautiful place! Thanks for sharing, beautiful pictures!
Wow, I am in awe. So gorgeous. I would love to see this in person. I am amazed at the talent of people.
I’ve never been to St. Petersburg, but I’d love to visit this place. The cathedral looks wonderful and I love its mosaics. 🙂
Been meaning to visit St Petersburg forever! Thanks for the pictures. Now, I’m really motivated to visit.
All these pictures are so inspiring and enriching for the soul. The decorative wall art of orthodox Eastern Europe is beautiful.
Wow, talk about a big mosaic! I never thought about it that these are just huge mosaic artworks. It looks gorgeous and I’d love to see it in person one day.
I don’t know when, but I need to get there. These photos are so breathtaking and inspiring. I have to add St. Petersburg to my 2020 list! Great post!
So much work and time have gone into these pieces that it is a lot of take in. The ceilings always have an impact on me, it s such a large space and so much detail that goes into it.
The pictures are so glamorous. I will definitely visit that majestic place to have an unforgettable experience.
The Mosaic at St Isaaacs Cathedral is so beautiful. The last supper mosaic reproduction is my favorite.
This is a stunning article! It reminds me of my time in Italy. Ah, the memories!!
So incredibly beautiful! I have always wanted to see it in person! Thank you for all the detailed photos. It felt like I was there.
What a stunning place to visit, the artwork is incredible
St. Petersburg is in my bucket list as we plan to visit Russia in the coming years during the summer. Glad to learn about St. Petersburg now.
Wow this cathedral looks so incredible! I love the mosaics. So pretty!
I have never been but I want to! That amount of time and effort that used to go into buildings is a amazing and I wish we were do detailed today!
wow, I mean, just wow! Those artworks are magnificent and I really wish to see them with my own eyes someday.
Just WOW, these images are stunning and I can only imagine being there in the moment.
These mosaic artworks looks awesome..! I love the pictures, such a great blog, thanks for sharing..!
Always can find great mosaics here. Today yet another great share on their display in the cathedral that many will find beautiful!
I always love traveling the world through your posts. Thank you for sharing x
St. Isaac’s cathedral looks so stunning..! The outside view from afar is already breathtaking, and the photos you shared, seeing its ceiling and bottom is so cool..! The arts are so amusing..!
Wow, St. Petersburg Cathedral looks like a magnificent work of art! One day, I would love to travel here to see it all myself…. so stunning.
I’ve never been to St Isaacs Cathedral before but it looks magical. I’ve just added it to my ever-growing bucket list of places to visit before I die 🙂
Louise x
I can’t get over the beauty of it all. I would love to go and take a million pictures.
Wow it is so beautiful what can be done with a mosaic. Thank you so much for sharing this, it’s really stunning.
Your photos are absolutely stunning. If it looks this amazing in photos, I can’t imagine the effect of being there. What a lovely holy place.
There is no doubt that Petersburg has so many places to visit, and this cathedral is no an exception, love all the details and all the history that it has!
What a stunning mosaic display this is. St Petersburg is on my list of places to visit and I would love to stop of at St Isaac’s Cathedral to marvel at this beautiful and magical creation
Wow so historical. I would love to visit this for myself!
This looks so amazing! I would love to visit there some day. The pictures look so beautiful, love the architecture too!!!
I wish i have the time and travel fund now to explore this interesting and beautiful site!
I had the absolute pleasure of visiting this place in St. Petersburg. I remember like it was yesterday. It’s indeed very impressive! And although no picture can make it justice I have to say yours are really good!
What amazing art! the mosaics are beautiful in St Petersburg! I hope to make it there someday!
I’ve been here! I visited St. Petersburg last year and was in awe of the incredible artwork. It’s absolutely stunning.
Although I’ve never been a huge fan of religious art, I’m always inspired by how beautiful old churches are with their intricate designs. It is truly awe-inspiring.
This is such a wonderful place. I’ve heard about how beautiful St. Isaac Cathedral and I always wanted to visit here.
These photos of St. Isaac’s cathedral looks so stunning, thanks for sharing pics. The artworks are so amazing..
Such a nice place. I love coming into these places. Id also love to see St Petersburg in the future.
Yep, all the cathedrals are wonderful and quaint, especially their ornate interiors. This one is no exception. Very artistic!
Wow, the artwork in this cathedral is breathtaking. Thank you so much for sharing.
This looks like an amazing place to visit. photos are all beautiful. I’d love to visit and see all of this in person.
Wow, this looks incredible. I love the intricacy. I’ve always wanted to visit
I am loving all these pictures. And I would to visit this place.
The cathedral is stunning, everything is so beautiful. The mosaics are so elegant and meticulously placed. Amazing
Thanks so much for sharing these beautiful pictures! Would love to visit there someday; I love looking at art like this inside old churches in Europe…
This has to be one of the most beautiful churches I have ever seen. I’ve been around Europe but I haven’t visited St. Isaacs Cathedral. I sure would love to drop by and explore the next time we go!
Oh wow how amazing is this place. So beautiful and the detail in the mosaic tiles is fabulous xx
Wonderful art, a perfect display of artistic skill at its peak. I really felt wonderful looking at the pictures. Amazing
I still have this on my travel list of things to see. Truly magnificent.
You just made me want to make my way to St. Pete’s to check it out. THanks for highlighting this area.
It is an amazing cathedral.Cannot imagine how they’ve made these beautiful mosaic arts,specially for the purpose of church art.Wonderful!
That is stunning! My word incredible to see – will put it on the bucket list for sure.
I’ve seen a few cathedrals in Europe but this is definitely one of the more spectacular! Those mosaics are gorgeous! Thanks for sharing! 🙂
The cathedral is so majestic! I’ve never seen anything like it.
what a spectacular piece of art and look at those stunning mosaics!
This is indeed stunning! Those mosaics and other masterpiece alike must be know all by people around the globe! Fantastic!
That place looks absolutely beautiful. I love the intricate designs in those masterpieces. Going to places with such artistic skills on display makes me feel amazing.
Omg, these are so beautiful and intricate. I specially love the holy figure one with squared tiles. I wish to see it in person. Mosaics make everything look magical.
Mosaic art is indeed so beautiful! The whole cathedral in the mosaic art makes it simply breathtaking! Now I know why many travel bloggers tend to showcase the cathedral. I love it!