St.Sophia Church

This is the largest Orthodox Eastern Church in the remote eastern area, first constructed in March, 1907 by Russian Troops. St. Sophia Orthodox Church (Shengsuo feiya dajiaotang) is the most impressive, and imposing, structure. On September 27, 1923, planned by a well-known Russian architect, it began to be rebuilt. This lasted about 9 years until 1932. The 53 meters tall church is a perfect example of Byzantine architecture: the main structure of the church is laid out as a Latin Cross with the main hall topped with a huge green tipped roof. Under the bright sun, the church, together with the square around it, reminds the Chinese, bizarrely, of the Red Square in Moscow. St. Sofia Church is nowadays used as the Municipal Architecture and Art Museum with exhibitions of the architectural history of the city, a photographic survey with captions all in Chinese. It plays an active role in tourism and the construction of a historical and cultural city.