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Anonion dome, also known asonion cupola, is adome whose shape resembles anonion.[1] Such domes are often larger in diameter than thetholobate (drum) upon which they sit, and their height usually exceeds their width. They taper smoothly upwards to a point.
This feature is typically associated withchurches belonging to theRussian Orthodox Church, although they also persist in otherEastern European countries, and occasionally inWestern Europe:Bavaria (Germany),Austria, and northeasternItaly. Buildings with onion domes are also found in theOriental regions ofCentral andSouth Asia, and theMiddle East.
Other types of Eastern Orthodoxcupolas includehelmet domes (for example, those of theDormition Cathedral inVladimir), Ukrainianpear domes (St Sophia Cathedral inKyiv), andBaroquebud domes (St Andrew's Church in Kyiv) or an onion-helmet mixture like theSt Sophia Cathedral inNovgorod.
According to historian Wolfgang Born, the onion dome has its origin in Syria, where someUmayyad Caliphate-era mosaics depict early stages of the development of bulbous domes.[2][3] An early prototype of onion dome also appeared in Chehel Dokhter, a mid-11th centurySeljuk architecture in Damghan region of Iran.[4]
It is not completely clear when and why the onion dome gained popularity inRussian architecture, but buildings featuring them appeared as early as the 13th century,[5] reaching a peak by the 17th and 18th centuries, up until thePetrine period. Some suggest they had a decorative advantage over typicalByzantine andhelmet dome, while also not gathering as much snow during severe winters.[6] The largest onion domes of that time were erected in areas aroundYaroslavl. A number of these had more complicated bud-shaped domes, whose form derived from Baroque models of the late seventeenth century. Pear-shaped domes are usually associated withUkrainian Baroque, while cone-shaped domes are typical for Orthodox churches ofTranscaucasia.[citation needed]
Later, theMoors also brought the design toSpain, andIslamic influence in the 17th century may be responsible for its introduction inVienna, where it can be seen on manyBaroque structures. Throughout Austria and Bavaria, onion domes top innumerable small churches.
Some scholars suggest that onion domes first appeared in Russia during the reign ofIvan the Terrible (r. 1533–1584). The domes ofSaint Basil's Cathedral have not been altered since the reign of Ivan's sonFyodor I (r. 1584–1598), indicating the presence of onion domes in sixteenth-century Russia. Thus, Russians may have adopted onion domes fromMuslim countries, possibly from theKhanate of Kazan, whose conquest in 1552 Ivan the Terrible commemorated by erecting St. Basil's Cathedral.[7] Some scholars believe that onion domes first appeared in Russian wooden architecture abovetent-like churches. According to this theory, they were strictly utilitarian.[8]
In 1946Boris Rybakov analysed russian chronicles and concluded, that most of them, from the 13th century onward, feature onion instead of helmet shaped dome, suggesting that this style could not be imported from the Orient, where they did not replace spherical domes until the 15th century[9] Historians like Nikolay Voronin seconded his point of view.[10]
LaterSergey Zagraevsky surveyedicons andminiatures, dating as early as 11th century. He concluded that most icons painted after theMongol invasion of Rus display only onion domes. The first onion domes were displayed on some pictures of the 12th century.[11] According to him, single icon from the 15th century represented a helmet dome church. His findings led him to dismiss fragments of these dome types discovered by restorators beneath modern onion domes as post-Petrine stylisations intended to reproduce the familiar forms of Byzantine cupolas, like the rebuiltAssumption Cathedral and theCathedral of Saint Demetrius inVladimir. As well as restoration works on several other ancient churches that have revealed fragments of former helmet-like domes.
He also indicated that the oldest depictions of the two Vladimir cathedrals represent them as having onion domes, prior to their replacement by classicizing helmet domes. He explains the ubiquitous appearance of onion domes in the late thirteenth century by the general emphasis on verticality characteristic ofRussian church architecture from the late twelfth to early fifteenth centuries.[12] At that time, porches, pilasters, vaults and drums were arranged to create a vertical thrust, to make the church seem taller than it was.[13]
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Another consideration proposed by Zagraevsky links the onion-shaped form of Russian domes with the weight of traditional Russian crosses, which are much larger and more elaborate than those used in Byzantium and Kievan Rus. Such ponderous crosses would have been easily toppled, if they had not been fixed to sizeable stones traditionally placed inside the elongated domes of Russian churches. It is impossible to place such a stone inside the flat dome of the Byzantine type, which were characterized by broader, flatter domes without a special framework erected above the drum. In contrast to this ancient form, each drum of a Russian church is surmounted by a special structure of metal or timber, which is lined with sheet iron or tiles, while the onion architecture is mostly very curved. Russian architecture used the dome shape not only for churches but also for other buildings.[citation needed]
Prior to the eighteenth century, the Russian Orthodox Church did not assign any particular symbolism to the exterior shape of a church.[14] Nevertheless, onion domes are popularly believed to symbolise burning candles. In 1917, religious philosopher PrinceEvgenii Troubetzkoy argued that the onion shape of Russian church domes may not be explained rationally. According to Trubetskoy, drums crowned by tapering domes were deliberately scored to resemble candles, thus manifesting a certain aesthetic and religious attitude.
The Byzantine cupola above the church represents the vault of heaven above the earth. On the other hand, the Gothic spire expresses unbridled vertical thrust, which rises huge masses of stone to the sky. In contrast to these, our native onion dome may be likened to a tongue of fire, crowned by a cross and tapering towards a cross. When we look at theIvan the Great Bell Tower, we seem to see a gigantic candle burning above Moscow. The Kremlin cathedrals and churches, with their multiple domes, look like huge chandeliers. The onion shape results from the idea of prayer as a soul burning towards heaven, which connects the earthly world with the treasures of the afterlife. Every attempt to explain the onion shape of our church domes by utilitarian considerations (for instance, the need to preclude snow from piling on the roof) fails to account for the most essential point, that of aesthetic significance of onion domes for our religion. Indeed, there are numerous other ways to achieve the same utilitarian result, e.g., spires, steeples, cones. Why, of all these shapes, ancient Russian architecture settled upon the onion dome? Because the aesthetic impression produced by the onion dome matched a certain religious attitude. The meaning of this religious and aesthetic feeling is finely expressed by a folk saying - "glowing with fervour" - when they speak about church domes.
— Evgenii Troubetzkoy[15]
Another explanation has it that the onion dome was originally regarded as a form reminiscent of theaedicula (cubiculum) in theChurch of the Holy Sepulchre inJerusalem. The present structure dates back to 12th-century construction by the Crusaders.[16]
Baroque domes in the shape of an onion (or other vegetables or flower-buds) were common in theHoly Roman Empire as well. The first one was built in 1576 by thearchitectJohannes Holl (1512–1594) on the church of theConvent of the Franciscan Sisters of Maria Stern inAugsburg. Usually made ofcopper sheet, onion domes appear onCatholic churches all over southernGermany,Switzerland,Czech lands,Austria, andSardinia and NortheastItaly. Onion domes were also a favourite of 20th-century Austrian architectural designerFriedensreich Hundertwasser.[citation needed]
The onion dome was also used extensively inMughal architecture, which later went on to influenceIndo-Saracenic architecture. It is also a common feature inSikh architecture, particularly inGurudwaras, and sometimes seen inRajput architecture as well.
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Outside theIndian subcontinent, it is also used inIran and other places in theMiddle East andCentral Asia. At the end of the 19th century, the Dutch-builtBaiturrahman Grand Mosque in Aceh,Indonesia, which incorporated onion shaped dome. The shape of the dome has been used in numerous mosques in Indonesia since then.[citation needed]
TheWorld's Only Corn Palace, atourist attraction andbasketballarena inMitchell,South Dakota, also features onion domes on the roof of the structure.
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