Santa Sophia Church

Hours & Admission Price Peak Season
Jan.-Dec.
08:00-18:00
20 Low Season
Jan.-Dec.
08:00-18:00
20 Address & Phone No.88 Toulong Street, Daoli District, Harbin City, Heilongjiang Province Transportation Take bus NO.1, 2, 13, 15, 64, 66 or 113, get off at Shizhuang Dasha stop. Or take bus No. 53 or 114 and get off at the Central Street stop. Notes

Combining both Chinese and Russian culture, Santa Sophia Church, which now is Harbin Architectural Art Gallery, is the typical master work of Byzantium style building.

Harbin Santa Sophia Church is the largest Orthodox Church in the Far East. With a length of 53.35 meters and a total area of 721 square meters, the church is the typical master work of Byzantium style building. In 1997, it was repaired and renamed as Harbin Architectural Art Gallery, making it a significant landmark in the city of Harbin.

History

As the Oriental Railway was open to traffic in 1903, Russian came to China and occupied Harbin. In order to stabilize the morale of these soldiers, they set up the original Santa Sophia Church. In the same year, a Russian merchant rebuilt it into elegant wooden structure. After twice enlarged, the church finally formed a charming and magnificent appearance and a large scale that could contain 2,000 people at the same time.

For a long time after World War Two, Saint Sophia was hidden and forgotten when other significant Russian churches were destroyed in 1960's. In 1997, it was changed into a museum that shows the development of Harbin and the influence of foreign culture. The splendid church with typical Russian style is an important historical remain of Russian holding northeastern China.

Structure

Combining both Chinese and Russian culture, Santa Sophia Church is built as a perfect example of Neo-Byzantine architecture. The main structure has four storeys and a door on four sides respectively. The church is laid out as a Latin cross with the main hall topped with a huge green tipped roof. On the main entrance of the church, there is a bellhouse with seven timepieces of seven notes. The largest one weighs more than one ton.

Surroundings

A square lies in front of the church which covers doves, street artists and a beer drinking area. Every morning, the fountain at the square begins to spout water at 7:30 until 8:30. Sometimes, it is enjoyable to have a seat in the square while appreciating locals’ cozy life of playing with doves or drinking beers in an outdoor bar.

Harbin Culture