In the village of Poloshky near Hlukhiv stands the St. Nicholas Church, built in 1796 at the expense of a native of the village — Metropolitan of Kyiv Samuil Myslavskyi. The three-nave church in the late classicism style with a dome and a three-tiered bell tower remains the main decoration of the village. The metropolitan’s parents are buried here.
A Gift to His Native Village
Samuil Myslavskyi came from Poloshky, where his father Hryhorii was a priest. Having become Metropolitan of Kyiv, he built a brick church in his native village according to a typical late classicism design. The church turned out to be three-nave and single-domed, with an altar in a semicircular apse on the eastern facade. Along with the church, a three-tiered bell tower with a large dome was erected. The metropolitan’s parents are buried in the churchyard.
The Miracle of Saint Nicholas
The main shrine of the church is an ancient icon of Saint Nicholas, one and a half arshins tall, covered with a silver riza. In 1857, a fire broke out in the village: the priest’s house burned down, and a strong wind carried the flames straight toward the church. The church survived, while the stairs and platforms in the bell tower burned down, but the ropes on which the bells hung remained intact. Eyewitnesses recognized this as a miracle of Saint Nicholas.
Construction and Painting
The church’s plan has the shape of a cross and is divided into a narthex, a central part, and an altar separated by an iconostasis. The painting of the dome depicting God the Father gives special depth to the interior: light from the eight windows of the drum creates the illusion of radiance. In the 20th century, the bell tower was partially destroyed, but later the community restored it, although the shape of the dome changed.
How to Get There
Poloshky is in Shostka district, near Hlukhiv. The trip can easily be combined with visits to the churches of Hlukhiv: the St. Nicholas Church, the Trikhanastasiiska Church, and the Spaso-Preobrazhenska Church.
What to Consider
Hlukhiv region is a border area regularly shelled. Before traveling, check the security situation and restrictions of the Sumy Regional Military Administration.
