Moscow specialists have made a new iconostasis for the St. Nicholas Church of the Transfiguration of the Solovetsky Stavropol Monastery to replace the one destroyed by fire in 1923. The iconostasis is currently being transported from Moscow to Solovki. It is planned to be installed after the restoration of one of the main churches of the monastery is completed.
Moscow craftsmen restored the sculptural composition of the crucifixion, carved decor, made sculptural elements and stucco models, gilded the finished parts, painted the sculptures that will be included in the composition with oil paints, and also created the supporting frame of the future structure.
The main written source for the reconstruction of the iconostasis of St. Nicholas Church was the church and sacristy inventory of the Solovetsky Monastery. The iconostasis of the Church of John the Baptist from Kargopol, the iconostases of the Holy Trinity Cathedral of the Solovetsky Monastery and the Epiphany Cathedral in Elokhovo, Moscow, served as analogues for the design of the facade decor.
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The former iconostasis was lost in 1923. A large fire destroyed some of the icons, and some more were taken to the mainland and distributed to Russian museums along with other treasures from Solovki. St. Nicholas Church has been in disrepair for many years. The first restoration was carried out here from 1986 to 1988: the vaults were strengthened, the walls were tightened with metal ties, and communications were laid.
Full-fledged restoration began in 2019. In seven years, the brickwork of the temple was reinforced, the white stone floors and window sills of the walls and arches, wooden windows, doors and wrought-iron gates, copper roofs that were previously lost, and five new wooden heads covered with a ploughshare were recreated. Now the restoration is being completed, workers are dismantling the scaffolding inside the temple.