Historical Background
The first Transfiguration Cathedral was wooden and was built in the 16th century. In the 1700s a stone cathedral dedicated to the Annunciation of the Most Holy Theotokos and St. Varlaam of Khutyn was built on the site of the earlier building. In the 1880s the church was rebuilt by the architect I. I. Bulanov. A heated side chapel was added, and a freestanding three-tier bell tower 41.4 meters (136 feet) tall was built. The cathedral's domes were gilded. In 1939 the bell tower was blown up and the domes were broken. A cinema was opened inside. The building was returned to the Russian Orthodox Church only in 1993.

