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Kostroma is an historic city in central Russia, the administrative centre of Kostroma Oblast. A part of the Golden ring of the Russian towns, it is located at the confluence of the Volga and Kostroma Rivers.

Wooden House, Kostroma	Kostroma		Bridge over the Volga at Kostroma
Fire tower, Kostroma	Town square, Kostroma		Kostroma building tower
Lenin statue, Kostroma	Park, Kostroma	Volga view from Kostroma	Lenin statue, Kostroma
Ipatievsky Monastery	The Ipatievsky Monastery was founded almost seven centuries ago. Its location at the confluence of the Kostroma and the Volga rivers on the eastern borders of the ancient Russia and the protection it received from the Godunovs, big Kostroma landowners, and later the Romanov, were the two decisive factors in its origins.     The genealogy of the Godunovs and 16th-century legends ascribe the foundation of the monastery to the Tatar murza (chieftain) Chet who was believe to accept Christian faith (c.1330) under the name of Zakhari and enter service as Moscow's Grand Duke Ivan Kalita. Academician S.B.Veselovsky, after examining numerous written sources and sifting facts from legend, established that the monastery was founded in the 13th century. Veselovsky's findings were based on events that took place in the history of the town of Kostroma. In the 13th century it was ruled by Vasily Yaroslavich, the brother of Alexander Nevsky. After acceding to the throne of the Grand Duchy of Vladimir in 1272, he remained in Kostroma till the end of his days (1276). Local legends mention the Duke's victory over a Tatar detachment, the foundation of the Monastery of the Saviour in Zaprudnya on the other side of the Kostroma River and the bolding of churches by him in the Kostroma area.     The Ipatievsky  Monastery, located on an important trade rout,  was an impregnable fortress. Initially, the monastery had sturdy oaken walls, but nothing has survived of its early structures. And only a fairly eloquent picture of the monastery's history may be had from the monuments architecture, literature and art of the second half of the 16th century. The churches and cathedrals of that period had not survived, many other buildings were rebuilt and the walls and towers around the monastery was made taller. Today, some of the buildings dating from the Godunov period a being restored to their original appearance
Entrance to Ipatievsky Monastery Kostroma
	Iconostasis, Ipatievsky Monastery Cathedral		Communion cups Ipatievsky Monastery Cathedral
One of the main attractions at the Ipatievsky Monastery a the frescoes in the Trinity Cathedral painted by the famous Kostroma master, Guri Nikitin and his teem of icon-painters. The frescoes are executed in the loftiest traditions of early Russian art combining epic spirit with a new, deeply humanistic interpretation of the biblical stories. The frescoes and the cathedral's majestic interior are perceived by the viewer as an integral whole.
Chandelier and frescos Ipatievsky Monastery Cathedral	Fresco, Ipatievsky Monastery Cathedral	Doorway, Ipatievsky Monastery Cathedral	Ipatievsky Monastery Cathedral Door to Sanctuary Kostroma
Ipatievsky Monastery Trinity Cathedral Kostroma	Bell tower and Ipatievsky Monastery Cathedral	Ipatievsky Monastery Trinity Cathedral Kostroma	Courtyard Ipatievsky Monastery Kostroma
Romanov museum, Mikhail Romanov and family lived in the red building for a while	Architectural decoration Ipatievsky Monastery Kostroma	Inside of entrance to Ipatievsky Monastery Kostroma	Flowers and tower Ipatievsky Monastery Kostroma

 This page was last modified on Tuesday February 03, 2009