Kiev's ArchangelMichael statues

[Barbara]

Put up in 2001 to honor the Patron Saint of Ukraine, this bronze and gold-plated sculpture stands atop a rebuilt gate in Maidan Nezalezhnosti [ Independence Square ]. I chose what I thought to be the best view of the statue. Some angles made him look too hefty, not quite like the traditional images of tomorrow's Holy Archangel.

In contrast, here is a much older, thinner statue which I think is the one I saw when I visited Kiev, long before the new monument was built. As I recall, this venerable sculpture was off of Khreshchatyk, the main street in Kiev.



Closer up :


Contrast the new Archangel Michael statue in Kiev with classical European depictions.

Here is a scene packed with [real] drama < as opposed to the way the term is utilized in common parlance today. This statue is outside St Michael's Church in Vienna, Austria. In comparison, the stalwart new Kievan St Michael looks serene !



In Paris, another dynamic scene of Archangel Michael's triumph over a slippery Devil [ whose diabolical character is understated here ; only the bat-like wings betray that it is the evil one being vanquished ]:


Centerpiece of the Fontaine Saint-Michel constructed in 1858-1860 under the French Second Empire by Jean-Antoine-Gabriel Davioud. The figure of Archangel Michael's defeat of the Devil was the work of Francisque-Joseph Duret.
Note that this wonderful sculpture was viciously attacked only a decade later by mobs of Communists, conscious servants of the devil, during the infamous Paris Commune of 1871. The monument was damaged, but repaired to its present condition in 1893.

The Kievan style of envisioning Archangel Michael is without the devil being trampled as in the Western depictions above. The Great Warrior Archangel is shown wielding his fiery sword to protect a city or a people from the devil, but the latter does not appear as part of the scene.

Kievan websites make light of the fact that this new addition to their city was dubbed unflattering names by the locals like Batman - due to no real reason except the cape and the dark color of the bronze material.

Around the world, however, this stunning gold-winged statue has been a major hit. Countless websites sell images of this robust, inspiring image of the Prince of the Archangels atop the Lach [Lyadsky] Gates, built to reconstruct a medieval city gate.

[Luke]

St. Michael is the patron saint of Ukraine?

[Barbara]

Yes, our Saint of the Day today is Patron of BOTH Ukraine AND Kiev.

Whereas Moscow's patron is St George. However, in Russia, the city of Archangelsk, which name I have always loved to hear, is named for Archangel Michael.

Fortunately, I might add, though named for such an obvious opponent of the Devil, the devil's children, the Bolsheviks, did not consider renaming this port. In fact, none of the major port cities of the Russian Empire were given Communist names, due, in my opinion, to the desperate Bolshevik need for international recognition. Badly needed foreign trade for the struggling Soviet Union has been cited as a reason, too. After all, names like Archangelsk and Vladivostok were on the maritime charts of all nations. Only confusion would result if Archangelsk had been overnight transformed into Stalinoport, as was actually proposed by some sycophantic 'workers' !

Another point is that the Soviets did not tamper with the Russian North the way they did the Moscow region. Perhaps they were afraid to venture to that independent-minded area with their destructive maelstrom, or the sparsely populated North was not as strategically significant for them as the Russian heartland.

[Maria]

Good point, Barbara.

Perhaps the Bolsheviks were terrified of the Archangel because Jews do honor the angels.
For the Bolsheviks though, rather than faith, it most likely was a superstitious belief that prevented them from renaming the port cities.

Incidentally, devout prisoners held by the Soviets were often feared because of the stories of angelic protection. Although rare,
there are stories of Soviet guards who converted to Christianity due to the faith of the martyrs and the miracles they witnessed.

[Barbara]

Do you have any idea of examples of the Soviet guards being converted ? There was that one story of an unnamed guard who did go become a wanderer in repentance for his persecution of Orthodox Christians after seeing the fearlessness of a pious military man with whom that Bolshevik was supposed to do away. The narrative was incredibly well told and greatly moving. Are there others ?

Meanwhile, speaking of Heavenly protection, here is a photo of the Archangel Michael Monument directly across from another statue in Kiev's Independence Square. I was trying to get this to copy before : it finally did transfer here.

This Maidan is in the center of the city and these monuments were - MOST APPROPRIATELY - built over the former site of a statue of The Unmentionable evil Bolshevik usurper.

The statue facing Archangel Michael was installed in 2001. This is Berehynia, who has been termed the spirit of Slavic Protection. This monument is supposed to personify the ideal Ukrainian woman. The definition of what this figure represents is amorphous. Probably it is meant that way to drawn in non-religious people to unify all citizens. However, there is no denying the winged monument is beautiful.



If one does not feel comfortable with an ancient deity reigning over the city of Kiev, at least it is 1,000 times better than this repulsive monument I remember seeing - and shrinking away from - when walking above the Kiev Caves Lavra.



This chilling aluminum 102 meter statue is called Rodina Mat, Motherland. This creepy looking figure brandishes the Soviet Union's hammer and sickle on its shield. I can not say "her shield" since the figure looks like a mechanized robot, not a female. If one had to choose, the face looks more square and masculine than feminine.

Though Soviet emblems, street names, and the like were outlawed in Ukraine in 2015, World War II monuments were exempted. Unfortunately, they remain prominently placed on this ugly specimen of Soviet 'art'.



WHAT ABOUT DEMOLISHING THIS MONSTROUS EYESORE NEXT and having a pious sculptor create a holy substitute to put up over its location ?

How about the REAL Mother image, a statue of the Mother of God ?