On one of the old streets of Samara, a monument was unveiled to one of the most revered Orthodox saints - Nicholas the Wonderworker - in memory of the event of 1956, which was popularly called "Zoe's Standing" or "Stone Zoya".
According to legend, in Samara, on Chkalov Street (Uralskaya), at house no. 84, there lived a girl Zoya, who, without waiting for the fiancé Nicholas on New Year's Eve, grabbed the icon of Nicholas the Wonderworker for dancing and turned to stone, standing for about four months. The debate about whether this event really took place continues to this day.
One way or another, but on Tuesday a monument to the Saint was unveiled next to the iconic house. A human-sized bronze figure of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker under a gilded dome was installed with a private donation.
It was originally planned that only a sign with a short link to the legend would appear on the house to attract tourists. However, in the end it was decided to put on a whole sculptural composition, which was opened on Tuesday what is called the whole world. The opening ceremony of the monument was attended by Metropolitan Sergius of Samara and Syzran, as well as the ex-head of Samara, Viktor Tarkhov, who issued permission to erect the monument.
In the evening, cars with townspeople stopped at the monument, many got out of the transport and, crossing themselves, bowed to the Saint. Elderly residents of neighboring houses enthusiastically discussed the event of 1956, repeating that "it was so," and "they say, the story was hushed up for political reasons." It is likely that now this place can become not only a tourist highlight of Samara, but also a place of pilgrimage for Orthodox believers. However, while the fate of the house itself is unclear, it is likely to be demolished.
A comment
Promotional video:
Mikhail Matveev, deputy of the Samara Provincial Duma:
- The question of what is the future of the house itself and the place where it now stands remains open. The Minister of Culture of the region Olga Rybakova, who is responsible for identifying and registering monuments, recently refused to conduct a historical and cultural examination of the house where Zoya's Stand was located, expressing doubts about the existence of the “historical and cultural value” of this object. There is information that the house can be demolished and the land given for building. True, the regional ministry of construction and the city administration of Samara reported to my inquiry that a building permit had not yet been issued. Meanwhile, there has long been an idea to install a chapel of St. Nicholas on the site of the house, while the house itself is proposed to be dismantled and transferred to the territory of one of the Samara monasteries.
