The Cathedral of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary and a cloister of the Franciscans are a calling card of Pinsk.

Pinsk Cathedral is one of the most ancient architectural monuments of the period of Grand Duchy of Lithuania. A document about its foundation – “a foundation act” – is dated from 1396. First the church was wooden and from time to time was burned and renewed. Lot later in 1720-1730 it was rebuilt to stone in the Baroque taste (the architect – A. Yarashevich). In 1817 a three-high stone belfry was placed in front of the church (the architect K. Kamienski) the fourth tier of which was completed at the beginning of the XX century. The cloister was closed by Russian authorities in 1852 and the church was converted to the status of a parish church. In 20-s of the XX century under Poland the cloister was restored and the church became again Cathedral. In Soviet times temples were closed and since 1991 passed to the Catholic Church. The Cathedral became the main temple of the Pinsk diocese. The Pinsk Cathedral is famous by its organ made in 1836 which consists of 1498 metal organ-pipes. It’s the most ancient organ in Belarus and the second by dimension in Europe. A complex of the church and the cloister is a true adornment and a calling card of the city. The best view to this architectural ensemble opens from the river.

Publication date: 08.08.2017.

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