The main structure of St. Isaac's Square. The largest cathedral in St-Petersburg and one of the highest in the world (101.5 metres).
It was put up by Auguste Montferrand in 1858 and immediately became the city's main cathedral where even the members of the royal family were christened. The construction of the cathedral took 40 years! But it was all worth it since even now the magnificent gilded dome of St. Isaac's Cathedral can be seen for miles around the city.
You might wonder why the cathedral would bear the name of St. Isaac. He was a Byzantine monk who lived in the 4th century and is known in the Russian Orthodox Church as St. Isaac of Dalmatia. Peter the Great was born on his day (the 30th of May).
Looking at the cathedral from the outside you can see large central dome and four smaller ones surrounding it forming a shape of a cross; huge solid granite columns and sculptures of angels at the top. The interior walls and a ceiling are decorated with magnificent paintings by famous artists of the time, mosaics, stained glass windows and columns made of precious stone.
And of course, you can't visit the cathedral without climbing 300 steps of the stairwell leading directly to the colonnade. It's a bit tiring journey but you definitely won't regret doing it as St-Petersburg looks truly magnificent from high above!
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