Attractions of Lviv district

The architectural ensemble of Lviv's main shopping square began to take shape in the 14th century in the style of European medieval cities (before that, the Stariy Rynok (Old Market) was the shopping center).

Market Square (Rynok square) is surrounded on four sides by 44 houses (apartments), different in time of construction and style (Renaissance, Baroque, Empire). Architects Petro Krasovskyi, Martyn Gradovskyi, Petro Barbon, Pavlo Rimlyanin, Bernard Meretyn, Sebastian Fesinger and others worked on the building.

Elements of Gothic architecture of the XV-XVI centuries have been preserved in the basements and first floors of many buildings. They are home to museums, shops and popular cafes. The Lviv Historical Museum occupies the most interesting buildings ("Black Stone House", "Royal Stone House" and others).

The Town Hall (1381-1827) in the center of the square is a symbol of the city. The building is used for its intended purpose - it houses the city government. The Lviv Information and Tourist Center is located on the first floor, providing tourists with information, maps and guidebooks.

There are always many tourists here, especially on the days of numerous holidays and festivals.

A monument to the leader of the Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists (OUN) Stepan Bandera was opened in Lviv in 2007 for the anniversary of the Ukrainization of the Insurgent Army (UPA).

It was in Lviv that Stepan Bandera began his political activity after entering the agronomic department of the Lviv Polytechnic in 1928.

The figure of the ideologue of Ukrainian nationalism is made full-length, more than 7 meters tall. In the background - the Stele of Ukrainian statehood - a 30-meter triumphal arch.

The Univ Holy Dormition Lavra is one of the oldest monasteries in Ukraine, the central abode of the Galician Diocese of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church.

The defense-type monastery was founded at the end of the 14th century by Prince Fedir Lyubartovych. Until the middle of the 15th century, the monastery was looked after by the princes of the Hedyminovych family. Subsequently, Univ passed into the hereditary possession of the Lahodovsky nobles.

In 1549, the Univ monastery was destroyed by the Tatars. After that, according to legend, the Virgin appeared in a dream to the noble Oleksandr Lahodovsky, who was seriously ill, and pointed to a healing spring near the ruined monastery, thanks to which the knight was cured. In gratitude, he built a defensive stone church of the Dormition of the Holy Virgin with a bell tower above the spring, as well as defensive walls with four corner towers. Outside, the fortress was surrounded by a moat with water and a high rampart. The preserved tombstone of Lahodovsky is one of the best examples of Western Ukrainian Renaissance sculpture.

In the 17th and 18th centuries, there was a printing house at the monastery that published old books.

After the region joined the Austrian Empire, the monastery was closed and rebuilt as the residence of the metropolitan. Monastic life was revived here by Metropolitan Andrey Sheptytskyi, handing over the monastery to the monks of the Studio Statute. In 1919, the monastery acquired the status of a Lavra.

After the decline during the Soviet persecution of Greek Catholics, the monastery was revived again. The main shrine is a copy of the Univ miracle-working icon of the Mother of God

Svobody Avenue (Liberty Avenue) is the city's central street, the most elegant and prestigious in Lviv.

It arose in the 18th century on the site of the lower city rampart. Old names: Nizhnyi Valy, Nimetskyi Valy, Lenin Avenue. Architectural eclecticism with features of classicism, neo-renaissance and baroque.

Svobody Avenue with an avenue in the middle starts from the Opera House. In the center is a monument to Taras Shevchenko and a sculptural composition dedicated to the poet's works. It ends at Mitskevych Square. Two tributaries of the Poltva River once converged here. In the middle is the figure of the Virgin Mary. The marble statue was erected at the expense of Countess Severina Badeni in 1861, moved to its current location in 1904, restored in 1997. In 1905, a monument to Adam Mitskevych - a Polish poetic luminary - was erected. The historic building of the George Hotel is also located on the square.

The tourist center of the city (the so-called "Stometrivka"), the main epicenter of political life (the so-called "Klumba"), a permanent meeting place for informal youth (the so-called "Frog").

Lviv Aquapark "Plyazh" is one of the largest indoor water recreation complexes in Ukraine, capable of receiving 1,000 visitors at the same time.

On an area of 14,000 square meters, there is a 50-meter sports pool, an entertainment area with 9 water slides of different lengths and levels of difficulty, a children's area with a small pool and small slides.

Recreational and game lessons on the water, children's fitness and therapeutic gymnastics classes are held for children.

In the recreation area there is a Turkish bath and a jacuzzi, and two bars. Aerobics, fitness, dance and other classes are held. The complex also includes a solarium, a fitness center, a bistro, and an Internet cafe.

There is convenient parking.

"Ancient Zvenyhorod" Historical and Cultural Reserve was created in 2020 on the territory of an national importance archeological monument - the hillfort of the historic city of Zvenyhorod in the Lviv region. In the 11th-12th centuries, it was the capital of the Zvenyhorod principality, an important cultural, artistic and educational center. This is where the three oldest documents of the archival fund of Ukraine come from - birch certificates.

The prosperity of Zvenyhorod Halytskyi is connected with the stay on the throne of Volodymyrko Volodarevych, the great-grandson of Yaroslav the Wise. The ramparts of an ancient Rus settlement with a cubit, the remains of a princely palace, a stone church, boyar and artisan quarters have been preserved.

After the Mongol-Tatar invasion in 1241, Zvenyhorod fell into a long decline. At the beginning of the 18th century, the hetman of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, Adam Senyavskyi, began to build the Zvenyhorod Castle on the hillfort, but the construction was never completed. Four pentagonal corner earthen bastions and the remains of the system of earthen fortifications remain of its fortifications.

You can learn more about the history of the historic city in the museum of the historical and cultural reserve "Ancient Zvenyhorod". Archaeological finds from the territory of the settlement, graphic materials, interactive exhibits based on augmented reality are presented here. You can take a virtual tour of the streets of the medieval city, see the hypothetical interiors of churches and palaces.

The reserve also includes the "Prosvita" building of 1926, which is planned for restoration and placement of additional exhibits.

The Boim Chapel near the walls of the Latin Cathedral is one of the most remarkable architectural buildings of Lviv in the Renaissance style, an architectural monument of national importance.

The chapel was built at the beginning of the 17th century over the family crypt of the Lviv patricians Boim (the city cemetery was located next to the cathedral). Presumably, the construction was carried out by the team of architect Andriy Bemer.

Experts call this building in the style of the mature Renaissance with a transition to Baroque a vivid example of southern mannerism in Ukraine. The western facade of the chapel impresses with the wealth of decorative decoration. The author of the sculptural composition is considered to be the master from Wroclaw, Hanush Sholts. The dome is crowned by an unusual sculpture of a seated Christ. The interior is also filled with many sculptural images, most of which are by Yan Pfister.

The Boim Chapel Museum is a subdivision of the Lviv National Art Gallery.

The Museum of Jewish Culture and History of Lviv Jews "In the Footsteps of Galician Jews" operates in Lviv under the All-Ukrainian Jewish Charitable Foundation "Hesed-Aryeh".

Initially, the museum was founded in only one room on the first floor of the foundation, and on the eve of 2020 it expanded to several new exhibition spaces. Enthusiasts have been collecting exhibits for it for 20 years of the museum's existence.

In particular, today the museum presents the following exhibitions: "Department of Victims of the NKVD and Nazism", "History of Lviv Synagogues and Rabbis", "Bankers and Artisans of the Pre-War Period", "Jewish Hospitals", etc.

The column of Adam Mitskevych is one of two monuments to the outstanding Polish poet created in Ukraine for his centenary (the other is in Ivano-Frankivsk).

The idea of the monument project as a column was proposed by the writer Adam Krekhovetskyi. The ceremonial laying of the first stone in the pedestal on Mariatska Square (now Adam Mitskevych Square) took place on the day of Mitskevych's century in 1898.

The construction of the monument lasted five years, it was opened on October 30, 1904. It is considered one of the best monuments to Mitskevych in the world.

The Church of All Saints in the village of Hodovytsia was built in 1751-1758 by the prominent Lviv architect of Italian origin, Bernard Meretyn.

Lviv Archdeacon Stefan Mikulsky provided the funds for the construction. This is one of the projects on which Meretyn worked together with the famous sculptor Ivan Pinzel. The sculptor made an altar, some sculptures of which are now on display in the Pinzel Museum in Lviv and in the Olesko Castle. Paintings by the artist Oleksandr Rolinsky have been preserved in the interior. The baroque pediment of the church is decorated with characteristic decorative stone vases.

Later, the church in Hodovytsia served as prototypes for several more churches in the "Meretyn" style, which were created according to the architect's typical projects. The crucifix and the miraculous image of Mary with the baby were exported to Poland.

Meanwhile, the Church of All Saints in Hodovytsia has been abandoned since Soviet times and is gradually falling into disrepair.

National Museum in Lviv named after Andrey Sheptytsky presents an outstanding collection of works of Ukrainian national culture and art.

More than 175,000 exhibits reflect the evolution of Ukrainian art culture over nine centuries. Of particular value is the collection of sacred art of the XII-XVIII centuries.

The institution was founded in 1905 by the Greek Catholic Metropolitan Andrey Sheptytsky as the "Church Museum", in 1913 it was solemnly donated to the Ukrainian people. The work on the organization of the museum was headed by Professor Ilarion Svyentsitsky, Ivan Franko, Mykhaylo Hrushevsky and others took an active part in its development.

In the spacious exhibition halls of the main museum building there is a permanent exhibition of "Ukrainian art of the XII - early XX centuries", presenting the pearls of the national and world art treasury. Among the works of Ukrainian medieval sacred art there are ancient icons: "Yuriy Zmiyeborets" (XIV century), "Archangel Michael with deeds" (XIV century), "Saint Paraskeva Friday" (XIV century), "Virgin Hodegetria" (XV century) and others. The book collections include the Buchach Gospel (13th century), the Pandects of Antiochus (1307), the editions of the first printers Shvaypolt Fiol, Frantsysk Skoryna, Ivan Fedorov, and others. Graphics, sculpture, folk art are also presented.

The departments of the Sheptytsky National Museum are the exposition "Ukrainian Art of the Twentieth Century" in the historical building of the museum, art and memorial museums of Ivan Trush, Oleksa Novakivsky, Olena Kulchytska, Leopold Levytsky, arranged in the former homes and creative workshops of these outstanding Ukrainian artists.

The Church of the Annunciation of the Holy Virgin in Horodok was built in 1633 on the site of a wooden church that was moved here in 1547 from the suburbs.

In 1869, the perimeter walls were strengthened with an inclined stone plinth, and powerful buttresses were installed on the northern side. In the 1880s, wooden baths were replaced by stone ones. Later, a chapel was added to the northern wall. In the 1950s, an iconostasis was built in the church.

The Church of the Annunciation got its modern appearance as a result of numerous reconstructions. The last restoration was carried out in 1938.

As an architectural monument, the Church of the Annunciation in Horodok is an excellent example of Renaissance architecture in Ukraine.

Belongs to the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church.

Archaeological Museum of the Institute of Ukrainian Studies named Ivan Krypyakevych of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine has been working in Lviv since 2001.

Located in the historic building of the Shevchenko Scientific Society, that previously led the Ukrainian archaeological research in Galicia.

The museum presents artifacts from the Paleolithic to the late Middle Ages, found in Western Ukraine.

Along with the original artifacts of stone, bone, horn, clay, ferrous and non-ferrous metals, life-size reconstructions of Paleolithic housing methods (more than 50,000 years ago) during the existence of the Trypillya culture (IV-III millennium BC), in the early Slavic period (V-VII centuries AD), the ancient methods of leather processing, drilling of stone axes, making pottery, smelting iron, etc. were reproduced.

In total, more than 2,000 exhibits were presented.

The wooden church of Archangel Michael in the city of Komarno was built in 1754.

One of the best examples of the Galician school of folk architecture. The three-log three-headed temple has undergone several reconstructions, the last of which, carried out in 1965-1967 under the leadership of architect Ivan Mohytych, returned it to its original appearance.

An interesting feature of St. Michael's Church is the east log with archaic tiny niches to the north and south. In the interior there is a monumental painting of the 18th century.

To the west of the church is a three-tier bell tower with a tented finish, the lower tier of which is surrounded by a porch on brackets of the original structure.

Nearby is the new brick church of Saint Michael the Archangel (1910).

The Church of Archangel Michael in Pidberiztsi near Lviv was built in 1891-1892 according to the project of the famous architect Ivan Levinsky.

The baptistery church was built in the neo-Byzantine style. With the assistance of Metropolitan Andrey Sheptytskyi, in 1907-1910, the interiors were decorated with a magnificent monumental painting by the famous artist Mykhaylo Sosenko in the style of Ukrainian Art Nouveau.

Saint Michael's Church in Pidberiztsi belongs to the Orthodox Church of Ukraine.