The Cathedral that Contains the Most Mosaics in the World

The Church of the Savior on Spilled Blood is one of the main Russian Orthodox cathedrals in Saint Petersburg. The cathedral's official name translated from Russian is the "Church of the Resurrection of Jesus Christ", however the more common name of, "Church of the Savior on Spilled Blood" came from
1881 (before the cathedral was built) when the Tsar Alexander the 2nd was wounded in an attempted assassin at that site. Alexander the 2nd died shortly after from his wounds.
As a memorial to his father, Alexander the 3rd began construction of the Catherdral in 1883. Alexander wanted the cathedral built like the traditional Russian cathedrals. After rejecting many architects, Alexander hired Archimandrite Ignaty, and Paraland to complete the design. The design is very similar to the famous 'St. Basil's Cathedral' in Moscow and the 'Vladimir Cathedral' in Kiev, Ukraine. Twenty-four years of construction, and the cathedral was finally finished in 1907. The church costed over 4.6 million roubles, around 80,000 USD.
During the Russian Revolution of 1917, the cathedral was ransacked and damaged. The Soviet Union then closed the cathedral. The cathedral was once again destroyed during the Siege of Leningrad when it was used as a temporary morgue for those who died from illness, starvation and combat. After World War 2, the cathedral was used to house vegetables. In 1970, 'Saint Isaac's Cathedral' became a museum and the funds were used to restore the 'Church of the Savior on Spilled Blood'. Just recently, in 1997, the cathedral was re-opened after 27 years of restoration. Although the cathedral has been restored, it has not been reconsecrated therefore preventing it from being a place of worship.
'The Church of the Savior on Spilled Blood' is a museum of mosaics.With over 7,500 square meters of mosaics-more than any other church in the world-it's one of the main attractions of Saint Petersburg. The walls and ceilings are completely covered in detailed mosaics of bible stories. It's amazing to look at. It's unbelievable to think that each of the pictures comes from millions of tiny pieces of tile. The pictures don't do this beautiful cathedral justice. I am in love with the beauty of these pictures. I can understand why it took so long to build and restore. This is my favorite cathedral that I have seen since being in Russia.
 I 100% looked like a foreign tourist taking pictures in awkward positions and smiling in my pictures, Russians will never smile in their pictures, especially not with teeth.

Advice from a girl who is in love with Architecture:

Take  pictures of EVERYTHING, even if people give you weird looks. You will be so grateful that you have images of great memories. Be sure to have pictures of yourself in awesome places-they're 100% better to look back on then just the awesome places.

-Laura Burke (soon to be Frazier)