On May 24, Polotsk / Diana Kurilo - BELTA /. A monument to the medieval architect Ioann was solemnly unveiled today in Polotsk on the eve of the festive celebrations dedicated to the 1150th anniversary of the city, a BELTA correspondent reports. The legendary architect of the Middle Ages is the author of the Saviour-Transfiguration Church, a recognized masterpiece of Eastern European architecture. The temple was erected in the 12th century by order of Saint Euphrosyne of Polotsk. "The divine spark of this man's talent shines upon us through the centuries. This is a monument to a creator. Each of us must be a creator of our family, lineage, and land," said Alexander Poznyak, Chairman of the Polotsk City Executive Committee, at the solemn opening ceremony. The bronze monument, 3.5 m high, was cast according to the project of the famous sculptor Alexander Shappo. The monument was made with funds from enterprises, including construction companies, of the city, the city organization of the republican public association "Bely Rus", and was installed in the new residential microdistrict "Aeroport". Polotsk is a city of monuments, many of which are unique. For example, the sign of the Belarusian alphabet letter "u kratkoye" (short u), authored by Igor Kurzhalov. Sculptors Alexander Prokhorov, Leonid Minkevich, Sergey Ignatiev, and architect Dmitry Sokolov immortalized for Polotsk its famous prince Vseslav Bryachislavich – Vseslav the Sorcerer. This monument became the first equestrian monument in Belarus. The monument to the architect Ioann will take its rightful place in this series. According to Alexander Prokhorov, Dean of the Faculty of Arts of the Belarusian State Academy of Arts, sculptor, it is a new word in Belarusian monumental art and a "pearl among the monuments of Polotsk." -0-

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