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Transfiguration Cathedral, Odesa

Eastern Orthodox cathedral in Odesa, Ukraine

Architectural plans, a scale model, maps and brass measuring instruments
Places and architectureInterpretive dossier study · Crown Archives visual atlas
Record originEnglish Wikipedia
Text licenseCC BY-SA 4.0
Source revisionSep 1, 2026
Entity authorityQ2299324 ↗
Source-derived summary

The Transfiguration Cathedral (Ukrainian: Спасо-Преображенський собор) is the Orthodox Cathedral in Odesa, Ukraine, dedicated to the Transfiguration of Jesus and belongs to the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (Moscow Patriarchate).

History

The first and foremost church in the city of Odesa, the cathedral was founded in 1794 by Gavril Bănulescu-Bodoni. The construction started on November 14, 1795 following the project by Vikentiy Vanrezant, with the church originally dedicated to Saint Nicholas. Construction lagged several years behind schedule and the newly appointed governor of New Russia, Armand-Emmanuel de Vignerot du Plessis, Duc de Richelieu, employed the Italian architect Francesco Frappoli in 1798 to complete the edifice.

The church was designated as a cathedral in 1800. Three of its altars were consecrated in 1808, when the church was renamed to the Transfiguration Cathedral. It was continuously expanded throughout the 19th century. The belltower was built between 1827 and 1837 (architects Francesco Frappoli and Giorgio Torricelli), and the refectory connecting it to the main church was constructed in 1842. The interior was lined with real and artificial marble, and the iconostasis also was made of marble. Minor additions were made to the building until 1903, when it reached its final form.

Editorial summary

Begin with the source’s own compact description: “Transfiguration Cathedral, Odesa” is eastern Orthodox cathedral in Odesa, Ukraine. The dossier treats that line as a proposition to test through Transfiguration, Cathedral and Odesa, not as a finished interpretation.

Editorial reviewA valuable geographic starting point for tracing changing names, boundaries, uses and administrative responsibility. The current lead gives the account dated anchors—1794, 1795, 1798, 1800—that can be checked directly. The linked authority record independently contributes the date 1795-11-14. For this dossier, Transfiguration, Cathedral and Odesa is the immediate research focus.
Editorial analysis

Why this record matters

The phrase “eastern Orthodox cathedral in Odesa, Ukraine” supplies a clear boundary for inquiry. It also exposes the unanswered questions: who defined that boundary, when it became stable and which sources sit outside it.

Evidence profile

The strongest evidence will usually combine a dated visual record with documents produced by the authority responsible for the place. The source revision retrieved here is dated Sep 1, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q2299324. VIAF identifies the subject as 305338880. The Library of Congress control number is n2023038865. Authority coordinates are 46.483, 30.731. 3 of 5 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1794, 1795, 1798 and 1800.

Critical limits

A single description cannot reconcile every naming convention, rebuilding phase or administrative transfer associated with a place. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.

How to read it

Treat names, boundaries and functions as historically changeable. Maps, plans, inventories and administrative records can clarify what the place meant at different dates.

Best used for
  • Historic place names
  • Jurisdictional context
  • Routes into maps and plans
Verify next

Contemporary maps, plans, listed-building records, estate papers and the responsible local or national archive.

Three-step research path

  1. Establish the record: confirm the title “Transfiguration Cathedral, Odesa”, its source revision and the description used here.
  2. Expand the search: follow Transfiguration Cathedral, Odesa primary sources, Transfiguration Cathedral, Odesa archive and Transfiguration research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
  3. Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.

Questions for further research

  1. Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Transfiguration Cathedral, Odesa”?
  2. Which authority defined the place, boundary or structure at the relevant date?
  3. What physical evidence or contemporary plan supports the description?
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Source & attribution

This entry incorporates text from “Transfiguration Cathedral, Odesa” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.