On December 12, a souvenir sheet dedicated to the 500th Anniversary of the Novodevichy Convent was put into postal circulation in the UNESCO World Heritage series

The Novodevichy Stavropigial Convent in Moscow is one of the largest convents in Russia. It was founded in 1524 by Vasily III, the Grand Duke of Vladimir and Moscow in honor of the Smolensk icon of the Mother of God Hodegetria after the return of the ancient Russian city of Smolensk to the Russian lands from the Grand Duchy of Lithuania.

The Convent was named New (Novodevichy) in relation to the older ones: the Conception Convent, at that time referred to as Starodevichy (Old Devichy), and the Ascension Monastery in the Moscow Kremlin.

The entire Convent complex is represented by 14 buildings, 8 of which are churches, and the remaining 6 are residential and household buildings. The castellation fortress walls and towers were built in the late 16th century under Boris Godunov; in the 17th century, the towers were decorated with magnificent tracery crowns.

To date, the total length of the walls is 870 meters. The architectural ensemble of the Convent that took shape in the 16th-17th centuries underwent no significant changes. As an exceptionally well-preserved example of the Moscow Baroque, it has been placed under UNESCO protection and declared the treasure of all humankind.

The souvenir sheet provides a panoramic view of the Novodevichy Convent.

In addition to the issue of the souvenir sheet, JSC Marka produced First Day Covers and a special cancel for Moscow.


Artist: A. Kulemin; Design: A. Moskovets.
Face value: 200 rubles.
Souvenir sheet size: 90×77 mm, stamp size in the souvenir sheet: 65×32.5 mm.
Quantity: 18 thousand souvenir sheets.

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