Attractions of Listvyanka - St. Nicholas Church

St. Nicholas Church in Listvyanka is virtually the only ancient architectural monument of the village. This wooden church with bell towers consists of two tiers. In Russia, such a construction is called "octagon placed on quadrangle."

Old timers and guides in Listvyanka tell a legend associated with the construction of St. Nicholas Church. At the beginning of the XIX century, a Russian trading ship steered by merchant Xenophon Serebryakov ran into a gale in the waters of Lake Baikal. The crew was courting disaster. Serebryakov began to pray earnestly for the salvation to Saint Nicholas, the patron saint of seafarers.

Serebryakov and his crew were saved, and the merchant built a temple in honor of the Saint. Its construction in Nicola village began in 1846 on the Angara riverbank. But it was delayed and was only completed by the merchant’s wife Natalia after his death. Then, the church was moved to the of Baikal lakeside. And in 1957 it was moved once again, with the beginning of construction of the Irkutsk hydroelectric station.

At that time, to save the landmark from impounding, it was moved for 500 meters inland in the Cross Pad near Listvyanka. Today it is a functioning church, performing regular services. Among the temple’s icons, there are valuable relics dating back to the middle of the XVIII century.