Russia - Medieval Novgorod

Novgorod is the geographical little acorn from which nearly all of Russia’s turbulent history sprang. Ironically meaning ‘New Town’, Novgorod, dating back to the 9th century, has seen more history than anywhere else in the country. The result of all this historical hurly burly is a city crammed with centuries of fantastic Slavic architecture including Russia’s oldest major building – the 11th century Byzantine St Sofia Cathedral. Amongst the throngs of cathedrals and museums, there is also the 14th century church of Our-Saviour-at-Ilino with the only surviving frescoes of the Byzantine master – Theophanes the Greek. There is also the famous Historic Museum containing 35 galleries, crammed with over 80,000 artefacts and pieces of art, including a stack of Byzantine Novgorodian painted icons. Novgorod miraculously survived a trashing by the Nazis – so don’t miss a chance to check out this fabulous city which has been beating the odds for over one thousand years.

Have you been to Russia and know about some more great highlights worth a mention? Add details for other visitors to read about.
Add a Russia highlight > >.

Russia top highlights and attractions

• Around Samara
• Lake Baikal Region
• Medieval Novgorod
• Passports and Visas, Currency, Electrical, Airports and City guide
• The Trans Siberian Railway
• Walking in the Dombay area – Central Caucasus