| Dominican Church | |
|---|---|
| Dominican Church and Monastery | |
Домініканський костел і монастир | |
 The church's main facade | |
  Dominican Church  Dominican Church | |
| 49°50′34″N24°2′3″E / 49.84278°N 24.03417°E /49.84278; 24.03417 | |
| Location | Lviv |
| Country | Ukraine |
| Denomination | Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church |
| Previous denomination | Catholic Church |
| History | |
| Founded | 1749 |
| Founder(s) | Józef Potocki |
| Consecrated | 1764 |
| Architecture | |
| Architectural type | Baroque |
TheDominican Church and Monastery (Ukrainian:Домініканський костел і монастир,romanized: Dominikanskyi kostel i monastyr,Polish:Kościół i klasztor Dominikanów we Lwowie) inLviv,Ukraine is located in the city'sOld Town, east of the market square. It was originally built as the Roman Catholic church of Corpus Christi, and today serves as the Greek Catholic church of the Holy Eucharist.
TheDominican Order first arrived in Lviv during the 13th century and the first wooden church is said to have been built in 1234 within the Low Castle, founded by the wife ofLeo I of Halych. That church burned down during a war in 1340. A newGothic church, resembling the parish church inKazimierz Dolny, was built on the present site in 1378 and later rebuilt after a fire in 1407 along with the monastery buildings. During the 16th century the complex was ravaged by several fires, nevertheless it continued to gradually rise in prosperity. In the 18th century the church's ceiling started cracking and it was decided in 1745 that the church had to be taken apart and replaced with a new one.
In 1749Józef Potocki laid the cornerstone for the present dayBaroque church, commonly attributed toJan de Witte. Between 1756 and 1761Mikołaj Bazyli Potocki donated 236,000 złoty to the church and the Dominican monastery in Lviv, where his mother was buried.[1] These donations funded the Potocki chapel in the church. The church was consecrated in 1764 by the Latin archbishop of LvivWacław Hieronim Sierakowski.
The Dominicans managed to survive the reign of the Austrian emperorJoseph II, who closed many other monasteries. In 1865 aneo-baroque bell tower was added to the complex. In the years 1885–1914 a controversial renovation of the facade and interior was carried out.
AfterWorld War II, the complex was occupied by the Soviets, used as a warehouse, and in the 1970s changed into amuseum of religion and atheism. With the collapse of the Soviet Union the church was given to theUkrainian Greek Catholic Church and now serves as a parish church. The monastery, however, has not yet been returned and still serves as a museum (renamedThe Lviv Museum of History of Religion).[2]
The church resembles theKarlskirche. It is built on the plan of theGreek Cross inscribed in an ellipsoid and topped with a monumental dome.
Before 1946, the church contained a miraculous icon of theBlessed Virgin Mary, crowned by PopeBenedict XIV in 1751, which can be found today in the DominicanBasilica of St. Nicholas inGdańsk, and an alabaster figure brought bySt. Hyacinth from Mongol-sackedKiev toHalych and later to Lviv, which now resides inChurch of St. Giles inKraków.
In 2019, the Dominican Church was the location for theGregorian's music video for their songViva la Vida.[3]
Media related toDominican church, Lviv at Wikimedia Commons
