Cathedral of Christ’s Nativity and Bell Tower

According to the oficial website of Visit Chisinau “the cathedral was built between 1830-1836. The idea of building such an important object of worship belonged to Metropolitan Gavriil Bănulescu-Bodoni. But the foundation stone was laid only 9 years after his death. The architect Avraam Melnikov, chosen by competition, used the late neoclassical style (empiric style) for the building, with the use of ancient Greek forms for the columns. It has a symmetrical composition, representing a square with a side of 27 m, by joining to the cubic body four porticoes with six Doric columns each, resulting in a cruciform plan with identically designed facades. It was built of stone and brick, with three altars – one main altar – the Nativity of the Lord, and two side altars – the one on the left, dedicated to St. John the New, and the one on the right – St. Nicholas the Martyr (current names). The first radio station in Chisinau, Radio Basarabia, was officially inaugurated by broadcasting the liturgy from the Metropolitan Cathedral on 8 October 1939. The cathedral suffered during the 1940 earthquake, then during the World War II, with the spire, dome and interior being rebuilt in 1956, but with deviations from the original forms. During the USSR it was used as an exhibition hall. The reopening in a new format took place on August 25th, 1996 with the consecration of the Cathedral Cross. The original bell tower was built at the same time as the cathedral. It was located 40 m away from it, symmetrically with the cathedral and in relation to the geometric centre of the cathedral section. It had four levels, three prismatic, with successively receding sides, and the fourth in the form of a flat circular belfry for the bell chamber, covered by a dome. On the first level was a chapel, the entrance to which was through a portico with two columns on the south side. Identical porticoes adorned each facade of the bell tower, creating a small-scale repetition of the composition of the cathedral and harmonising with it in the shape of the domes. It was demolished in the 1960s and rebuilt in 1998 according to the old images.” The Triumphal Arc, located on the axis of symmetry of the architectural ensemble that also includes the Nativity Cathedral, its bell tower, the Great National Assembly Square and the Government House was built in 1840 by the architect Luka Zauschevic and thanks to the governor's of Bessarabia initiative to commemorate the victory of the Russian Empire over the Ottoman Empire during the Russo-Turkish War (1828–29). It was smelted with the copper of the cannons captured by the Russian forces from the Ottoman Empire. The bell "clopote–velican" was initially made for the cathedral's belfry but happened to be too big for it. Finally it was installed in this arch, which was designed in purpose. In 1945, plaques with the names of Soviet army fighters and citizens, who fought on the territory of Bessarabia in World War II and received the distinction of “Hero of the Soviet Union”, were nailed on the walls. The plaques were removed in 1991, after Moldova gained its independence. These photos were taken in April 2026 and show a selection ov views of the Cathedral of Christ’s Nativity, the Bell Tower and the Triumpal Arc in Chisinau.