Belarusian Museum Asks for Help in Restoring an Ancient Church

The Belarusian State Museum of Folk Architecture and Rural Lifestyle in Strochytsy has undertaken the restoration of the Holy Trinity Church from the village of Vyalets (Hlybokaye District), Tochka reports. 

This is a historic site with a very complicated and nearly forgotten past, so the process will not be easy.

The museum is asking anyone who may know something about this church to come forward. Any information is important.

“In 2026, we are beginning a great and sacred endeavor—the restoration of the Holy Trinity Church from the village of Vyalets (Hlybokaye District), which was also known among the people as Staraparetskaya or Makaveyewskaya,” the specialists said.

In the 19th century, the church was relocated there from the village of Burtulyowka, and for many decades under its vaults people prayed, baptized children, were wed, and saw their loved ones off on their final journey.

The church is a monument of 18th-century wooden architecture. In the 1980s, it was relocated from Vyalets to the Belarusian State Museum of Folk Architecture and Rural Lifestyle.

Павялічыць

Very Little Is Known

Today, only bare walls remain of this historical site. There is almost no information about what the church looked like inside. Only sparse references have survived in the archives.

“We do not know what its iconostasis looked like, which icons looked upon the parishioners, or which priests, psalmists, and bell-ringers devoted their lives to it. Without these details, the church risks remaining merely a beautiful log frame during restoration—deprived of its true, living soul,” the museum noted.

Representatives of the institution are actively cooperating with colleagues, and the search for information continues.

The museum appealed to Belarusians, especially residents of Hlybokaye District, asking for help in this difficult but vital endeavor so that the history of the church is preserved.

What Information Is Being Sought

Any information regarding what the Church of the Holy Trinity looked like inside will be valuable.

Perhaps something can be found in family albums: old photographs are needed (dating prior to the 1950s and up to the late 1980s) that show the church's walls, icons, and furnishings (even if only in the background). Photos from christenings, weddings, funerals, and church festivals are welcome.

It is also essential to record memories and stories—every single one is invaluable to the museum. If possible, people are asked to talk with their grandparents, neighbors, and local old-timers about this.

Names and information regarding the lives and fates of priests, bell-ringers, psalmists, and parishioners are also being sought.

Павялічыць

Ideally, they would also like to locate preserved artifacts from the Holy Trinity Church or at least photographs of them.

If someone is unable to travel to Minsk or scan pictures, museum staff are ready to travel to any village themselves to carefully make copies of photographs and documents, as well as record people's stories related to the church.

“Your help is an opportunity to bring life back to a sacred site of your native region, so that future generations can see it as our ancestors knew it,” the specialists emphasized.

How to Get in Touch

The Belarusian State Museum of Folk Architecture and Rural Lifestyle shared how to reach them if you have any information about this site.

You can call or write. Submissions are being accepted by the museum’s deputy director Yauhen Mikula, writes Tochka. 

Phone: 8 (017) 369-13-28.

Email: [email protected].

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