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Destroyed Temples of Kerch

The lost sacred architecture of Kerch from the 19th – early 20th centuries: the Orthodox Holy Trinity Cathedral, the Stempkovsky Chapel on Mount Mithridat, and the German Lutheran church (kirche), destroyed or rebuilt under Soviet rule; their appearance has been preserved in pre-revolutionary view postcards.

Overview

Kerch has preserved almost none of its 19th – early 20th century architecture, especially religious buildings: under Soviet rule churches were ruthlessly destroyed, so most of the city's temples today are modern. Pre-revolutionary view postcards (the postcard boom of the early 20th century) captured old Kerch; in Crimea the most popular views were those of the Southern Coast and Bakhchysarai, while Kerch appeared less frequently.

In the late 19th – early 20th century, Kerch's population did not exceed 30,000 people; the city was more compact. The entrance was near Shlahbaumska Street (one of the few streets that retained its historical name) → Feodosiiska Street (today Pyrohova) → Soborna Square (Cathedral Square), where the main Orthodox church stood — the Holy Trinity Cathedral.

Today the city, besides Orthodox churches, has a Catholic church, a mosque, a synagogue, Armenian and Georgian churches, and a Baptist prayer house. There was once also a German Lutheran church (kirche).

Key Details / Subtopics

  • Holy Trinity Cathedral (Soborna Square): the main Orthodox church of Kerch; built in 1832, with a bell tower and chapel added in 1845. Most Kerch residents came here on holidays. In 1931 it was closed and its cross was removed; during World War II it served as a food warehouse. After the city's liberation the authorities finally destroyed the cathedral, even though it had not been damaged by the fighting. The site is now occupied by the former branch of the Vernadsky Taurida National University. The temple's stones went into the Obelisk of Glory on Mount Mithridat.
  • Stempkovsky Chapel (Mount Mithridat): built in 1830 according to the will of city governor Ivan Stempkovsky (written two years before his death); for a long time it was a signature landmark of the city and a favorite postcard view. In 1944 the chapel was removed in connection with the unveiling of the Obelisk of Glory on Mithridat.
  • German Lutheran Church (Kirche, 1905): built by the efforts of Kerch's German settler community on the outskirts; its Gothic spires were visible from afar (as on the postcard showing the boom barrier). During the war it housed the headquarters of the German military commandant's office; German officers and soldiers were buried in the surrounding cemetery. After the war the crosses and spires were removed and the Rodyna ("Motherland") cinema was opened. In the 1990s, Rodyna was dismantled for building materials — the sites of the church, the cemetery, and the cinema are no longer discernible. Today the view is blocked by a fire station, a passport office, and residential buildings.
  • Mithridat Steps (Great Mithridat Staircase): mentioned among the works of Ivan Stempkovsky during his tenure as city governor (together with the school, the new pier, and the Holy Trinity Cathedral). In this wiki, the design of the staircase is also associated with Alessandro Digbi.
  • Postcards as a source: the early 20th century was a postcard boom; photo studios and printing houses produced fantastic print runs. Postcards are one of the few reliable sources on the appearance of old Kerch.

Contradictions and Open Questions

  • Mithridat Steps: the source on Kerch's destroyed temples attributes the construction of the Mithridat Steps to the works of city governor Ivan Stempkovsky; the Alessandro Digbi page (based on the article about Italians in Crimea) names Digbi as the author of the staircase project. There is no direct contradiction: a client/initiator and a designing architect can coexist; the sources do not specify the division of roles.
  • Destroyed Temples of Kerch — an article by Roza Krymska in the newspaper Krymska svitlytsia (2018, No. 47); the main source.
  • Ivan Stempkovsky — city governor of Kerch; initiator of the chapel on Mithridat; during his tenure the school, the pier, the Holy Trinity Cathedral, and the Mithridat Steps were built.
  • Alessandro Digbi (Oleksandr Digbi) — Italian architect of Kerch, author of the Mithridat Steps project and of the city's general plan.
  • Crimean Orthodox Diocese — church-historical context of Crimea's Orthodox churches (including the Holy Trinity Cathedral in Kerch).
  • Georgians in Crimea — a Georgian church (of Saint Nino) operates in Kerch; a brief mention in the source on destroyed temples.
  • Italians in Crimea — the Italian community and the architecture of Kerch (Digbi, the Mithridat Steps).
  • Kerch — the oldest city of Ukraine, context for the Mithridat Steps.
  • Mud Volcanoes of Crimea — geological landmarks of the Kerch Peninsula near Kerch.
  • Andrii Shchekun — editor-in-chief of the Krymska svitlytsia newspaper, in which the source was published.
  • Colleen McCullough — in The Masters of Rome, Mithridates Eupator and Panticapaeum (historical Kerch) are depicted; the toponym Mount Mithridat is linked to this king.