Tampere Cathedral. Tampere Cathedral (Finland) Tampere Cathedral

One of the main architectural attractions of Tampere, built at the very beginning of the 20th century. Externally, this Lutheran cathedral resembles a medieval castle in the Gothic and national-romantic style. The building's architect is Lars Sonks.

The greatness of the cathedral makes even the most ardent skeptics and atheists think about the meaning of existence. You can admire it not only from the outside, but also from the inside. The painting on the walls and vaults amazes with its beauty and harmony. The fact is that the painting of the cathedral is the work of famous Finnish symbolist artists H. Simberg and M. Enkel.

The images are, in fact, symbolic. So, for example, on the vault you can see a snake surrounded by countless small wings, meaning the protection of angels from everything sinful. One of Simberg's frescoes depicts a wounded angel, which he painted after a serious illness in 1903.

In addition, there are frescoes “Garden of Death” and “Garland of Life”. These original copies of paintings, unique in content, are not only a treasure of Tampere, but also the property of the entire country. The interior of the cathedral amazes with a lot of light and bright stained glass windows. Interesting fact: the church was entirely built by hand, i.e. without the use of any construction equipment.

The cathedral bell was brought from Germany. All other parts were built exclusively from Finnish materials. In 1923, the cathedral received cathedral status, as the diocese moved from Porvoo to Tampere. There are two organs in the church. The larger one is made in the spirit of romanticism, and the small organ was created specifically for the performance of baroque music.

The cathedral is open daily to residents and visitors of the city. Entrance is free. You can get to Tampere by car or train from St. Petersburg. If you travel by rail, you will need to change trains in Helsinki.

Photo attraction: Tampere Cathedral

Photo reports and reviews about the trip and visit to the Tampere Cathedral attraction. Photo report about Tampere Cathedral, history, where it is located

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• Review of In sandals - to Tampere and back Before this, we had never traveled just like that, but only went on journalistic business and touring. But after the wedding in August 1998, we managed to carve out ten whole days and go to my friend Karina in Finland. Karina’s city apartment was undergoing renovations, so she and her husband Hekki invited us to their dacha near Tampere. Every day we traveled a long way to get to tourist-useful places. Along the entire route of our journey, it was possible to explain ourselves almost everywhere... June 9, 2009
• Review to Photo 25 My winter holidays in Tampere I have only positive impressions about Tampere and a desire to come here again if the opportunity arises. January 29, 2014
• Review to Photo 24 My winter holidays in Tampere But to our surprise, the Orthodox Church in Tampere was also tightly closed and it was suggested to come only the next day on the 7th in the morning at 8 o’clock. By the way, when we found ourselves nearby the next day at 11 o’clock in the morning, the church was also closed - apparently everyone had already left :) January 29, 2014
• Review to Photo 23 My winter holidays in Tampere In the evening of the same day, on the eve of our Orthodox Christmas - around ten in the evening on January 6th, we decided to take a walk to the local churches and see if anyone was preparing and how for Christmas. The Lutheran Church was closed long ago. January 29, 2014
• Review to Photo 22 My winter holidays in Tampere There in the museum we passed the “agent test” - something like an interactive game around the museum - you complete tasks and collect points. I had great fun solving Morse code and looking for a secret room. Upon completion, we were given certificates and “assigned” to different intelligence services around the world. The husband who scored the maximum points was assigned to... Finnish intelligence! James Bond is resting :))) January 29, 2014
• Review to Photo 21 My winter holidays in Tampere Moreover, all the exhibits are not fake - everything is real. I suspect that in the museum’s storerooms there are also the most modern spy gadgets, but the unexpired statute of limitations does not allow them to be displayed yet :) January 29, 2014
• Review to Photo 20 My winter holidays in Tampere The Spy Museum is a lot of fun. I read in reviews that some people didn’t like it - they say there are few exhibits and it’s not interesting. This means we were without a tour and didn’t understand anything. On the excursion we learned so many interesting things and facts about things and facts - a world of intrigue and secrets :))) Even my most erudite and well-read acquaintances still do not know about some events and inventions. January 29, 2014

The cathedral is not only a beauty that we cannot help but admire.
Even if this is no longer a guideline for you to follow,
then, in any case, this is a book that needs to be understood.
The portal of the cathedral is the Bible.
Marcel Proust

Whatever city in Finland we find ourselves in, if it has a neo-Gothic cathedral, we will immediately feel that it is the center of all the life of the city. So it was, is and will be - as long as the cathedral stands. We can safely say that the cathedral remains both the source of life’s aspirations and their goal, everything comes from it and everything returns to it. Regardless of what kind of church it is (Catholic or Protestant), it is always a certain model of the world. And, indeed, large cathedrals were built in such a way that they could accommodate the entire population of the city at that time, in other words, they had to be of enormous size. Symbolizing Earth and Heaven, the cathedral contained all human life from birth to death.

The city's cathedral, with all the richness of its constituent elements, amazes with its extraordinary unity. Both in architectural terms and in the decorative system - exterior and interior. Statues, rosettes, arabesques, various decorations, capitals, bas-reliefs, stained glass windows - all elements must be in their place. Primary importance was attached to the decor of the main - western - portal of the cathedral. A special iconography was developed for him, the purpose of which was to present the Christian concept of the world.

There will be nothing accidental in the development of stained glass scenes. Stained glass windows are not just colored glass mosaics that let light into the room, they carried a sacred meaning. The play of light, which was achieved with the help of hundreds of small particles of one whole, created a feeling of piety and reverence. The light pouring through the stained glass windows creates an image of the heavenly world. “Every creature, visible or invisible, is light, called into life by the Father of all light.”

And indeed, we can see a well-thought-out system of characters and scenes not only inside one window or rosette, but throughout the entire system of stained glass windows of the cathedral as a whole. Multi-color stained glass windows are made using the lead glaze method, and not using glass painting, as it might seem at first glance. The cathedral is decorated with a number of stained glass windows made according to sketches by famous Finnish artists.

The stained glass window above the altar was created according to a drawing by Magnus Enckel. The cross and the crown of thorns are depicted - symbols of Christ and His suffering. The white cross consists of small circles, which are symbols of eternity.

The stained glass windows of the South and North galleries are made in accordance with the design of Hugo Simberg. Hugo Simberg was not attracted to banal everyday situations - on the contrary, he depicted something that opened the door to another reality and touched the mind and soul of the viewer. He understood art “as an opportunity to transport a person in the middle of winter to a beautiful summer morning and feel how nature wakes up and you yourself are in harmony with it. This is what I look for in a work of art. It must tell us something and speak loudly, so that we are carried away into another world.”

Simberg especially loved to depict what can only be seen in the imagination: angels, devils, trolls and the image of Death itself. However, he imparted softness and humanity to even these images. He took symbolic scenes from the Bible: Pigeon- incarnation of the Holy Spirit, Tree of Life–Burning Bush (Burning Bush). On the sides are the letters alpha and omega, meaning the beginning of all things and the completion of creation (Christ is God, manifested and completed Himself in the world). Pelican, feeding his chicks with the blood of his heart as a symbol of Holy Communion, Horsemen of the Apocalypse- in one there is a white horse and a red horse, in the other there is a pale horse and a black horse, as a symbol of the end of any life cycle.

In the cathedral there are also simpler stained glass windows with floral and geometric patterns.

A competition for the design of the “new Evangelical Church in the city of Tampere” was announced on November 7, 1899, with the final date for submission of works set as October 31 of the following year.

Sonka's project under the motto “Eternitas” (aeternitas (lat.) - eternity) received the first prize. A total of 23 projects were submitted, 2nd and 3rd places were taken by projects from the bureaus of Gran, Hedman and Vasasherna.

The winning project was distinguished by its picturesque silhouette and well-thought-out plan - for example, the benches for parishioners are located so that the priest can be seen and heard from any place, two massive columns do not obscure the view of the altar, since diagonal passages radiate from them.

The project was ready by December 1901. It envisaged, in addition to the church, the construction of several other small buildings, in the vicinity of which, in the author’s opinion, the church building should have looked better. The planned ensemble was not realized; only a church with a fence was built.

Construction began in April 1902. On Sonck's recommendation, engineer Heikki Kaartinen from Helsinki was appointed as the construction foreman, and Birger Federlei, who had previously worked with Sonck, was appointed as the construction supervision architect.

The granite was ordered from the Kivilouhimo company from Uusikaupunki. The stone was transported from Messikülle and Kuru on barges, and the largest blocks, weighing 10-15 tons, were transported on horses from Pinsiyo. The granite was processed in different ways: the walls were made of roughly chopped stone, the portals, steps and plinth were made of sawn stone, only some details of the altar were polished, in particular the railings.

In the spring of 1904, roofing work began. The steel frame for the main spire was manufactured by Tampereen Rautateollisuus (Tampere Metal Industry). The height of the main spire is 64 m, the middle one is 43 m, the smaller one is 38 m. Special tiles were ordered in Ylistaro to cover the roof.

Work on the interiors began with the installation of granite columns and laying out a 16x16m vault, the construction of which involved overcoming considerable difficulties.

The interior of the church is decorated with frescoes and paintings. Frescoes and paintings on the theme of the Apocalypse (the church is dedicated to St. John the Evangelist) were made by the artist Hugo Simberg. The author of the altar fresco “Resurrection” and the stained glass window in the altar window is the painter Magnus Enckel.

The woodwork (doors, benches) was carried out by Tampereen Höyuryuppuuseppää JSC, the stone carving was carried out by craftsmen from Estonia Nikolay Andreev and Lambert Kaivanto, the handles and other copper fittings were cast by the blacksmith Taavi Malin.

The organ with 50 stops was made in Lahti by master Albanus Jurva. In 1929, the Kangasala organ workshop added 18 registers. This instrument is considered the best “romantic” organ in Finland.

The architect Joseph Steinbeck bought three copper bells for the belfry in Germany, in the foundry of Franz Schilling.

The author of the church utensils is Eric O.V. Ernström; ornaments carved on wood and engraved on copper - Walter Jung; lamps – Max Freelander; furniture in the sacristy and in the basement meeting room - Lars Sonck.

The temple impresses not only with its architecture, but also with all its decoration. Not only vision, but also hearing is involved in this impression - the building has wonderful acoustics. As Paula Kivinen writes, “In this church, the message of Christ definitely reaches the listener.”

Construction, which lasted five years and three and a half months, was completed in the spring of 1907. The church was consecrated on May 19 of the same year by Bishop Herman Roberg from the diocese of Porvoo.

In 1924, when the diocese of Tampere and the Church of St. St. John's became a cathedral.

The five-year work of the country's best masters embodied the most valuable things that national romanticism absorbed from the past or rediscovered. Cathedral of St. Joanna is not only the pride of Tampere, but also, according to popular opinion, the main monument of this style in Finland.

Material taken from the Internet resource: http://finmodern.narod.ru