Saint Nicholas Church in the pomor settlement of Maloshuyka — the oldest tent roof temple of the octagon-on-quadrangle type. History and architecture

Introduction. The Saint Nicholas Church in Maloshuyka, dated 1638, is notable for being one of the earliest known examples of a widely spread type of wooden temple. Despite its historical and cultural significance, this object remains largely unstudied. To better understand the development of Russian wooden church construction and set up a typology, it is necessary to consider the Saint Nicholas Church in the context of all-Russian church building traditions of the 17th century. A monument of such significance needs to have its own place in the history of Russian wooden architecture. Materials and methods. The study was based on historical archival documents and on-site survey results. We considered the monument together with the history of the settlement and the entire region. A joint historical and architectural approach was used to study the object. The object was compared with its equivalents via comparative typological analysis. In order to identify individual and typical features in the Saint Nicholas Church architecture, typologically similar objects were reviewed chronologically and geographically. Results. New historical sources were introduced into the scientific discourse. Construction history and periodization of the Saint Nicholas Church were identified. We determined changes in appearance at each construction stages, and described architectural, artistic and stylistic descriptions of the object at each construction stage. The object was compared with similar objects, and characteristic features of this type of church at the early stages of its evolution were identified. They were expressed in general dimensions, proportions, and decorative finish. Regional typical features and all-Russian features were singled out. The place of the object in the Russian history of wooden architecture was defined. Conclusions. The Saint Nicholas Church is a unique monument of Russian wooden architecture. Being the oldest tent roof wooden temple of octagon-on-quadrangle type, this object reflects the earliest development stages of this architectural type. The Saint Nicholas Church has certain local architectural features, but it generally conforms to the all-Russian architectural traditions of the 17h century.