Nine stained-glass windows decorating a medical building at 1 Zahorivska Street in Kyiv have been recognized as cultural heritage sites. They were handmade by monumental artists Valerii Karas and Marietta Levkhanian.
Rubryka reveals, citing the Kyiv Scientific and Methodological Center for the Protection, Restoration, and Use of Cultural Heritage Sites.
The windows are part of the History of Medicine ensemble, created in 1976.
The stained-glass ensemble consists of more than 1,500 glass elements, each of which was handmade by the artists. They created the forms themselves, added dyes, and applied images to partially hardened glass. In this way, they created compositions dedicated to the development of medicine across different cultures and civilizations.
The stained-glass windows tell the history of medicine from Kyivan Rus and Ancient Greece to the Arab world and China. Each composition is part of a unified ensemble dedicated to the development of medical knowledge and practices across different civilizations.
At the same time, the unique ensemble was damaged in the early 2000s. Some of the stained-glass windows were dismantled and replaced with ordinary windows. Two other compositions are currently blocked from view from inside the building, making it impossible to see them in their entirety.
Another issue concerns ownership of the premises where the ensemble is located. The building is used by three different hospitals, which formally own separate sections of the stained-glass windows. This division also affects matters related to preserving the compositions.
To prevent further deterioration of the ensemble, specialists prepared registration documentation for each of the nine compositions. Following this, the Department for the Protection of Cultural Heritage granted the stained-glass windows protected status.
The documents have now been submitted to the Ministry of Culture and Strategic Communications of Ukraine. The next step is expected to be the inclusion of the nine stained-glass windows in the State Register of Immovable Monuments of Ukraine.
As previously reported, last summer, a recreated version of the legendary mosaic “Boryviter” by Sixtiers artist Alla Horska, which was severely damaged in Mariupol during the fighting in 2022, was unveiled at Independence Square in Kyiv.
We also reported that the Law on Decolonization came into effect on July 27, 2023, aiming to address the destruction and removal of monuments from the Soviet period. Those that have purely propagandistic significance are to be dismantled, while those with artistic value should be preserved. Rubryka examined the future of Soviet-era Ukrainian mosaics and how civic activists are working to preserve them in the meantime.
Tags: cultural heritage Culture kyiv
