Medieval сhurch сrumbles as Culture Ministry сites missing agreement

Collapsed buttress of St. Nicholas Church in Chesnyky. Photo: Roksolana Rosolovska, personal archive/Facebook

Ukraine's Ministry of Culture says the 14th–15th-century St. Nicholas Church in the village of Chesnyky, Ivano-Frankivsk Region, is deteriorating because no heritage preservation agreement has been signed. The explanation came in a response from Deputy Culture Minister Yevhen Lavro to an information request submitted by Suspilne Ivano-Frankivsk.

According to Lavro, the church is listed in Ukraine's State Register of Immovable Monuments as an architectural monument of national significance. The Cabinet of Ministers adopted the relevant resolution on January 3, 2024. However, according to the Ivano-Frankivsk Regional State Administration, no heritage preservation agreement has been concluded. The ministry also claims it found no requests to transfer the church for use or management.

The response did not specify whether the church is owned by the state, the local community, or a private entity. Under Ukraine's Law on the Protection of Cultural Heritage, owners of historic monuments are required to sign preservation agreements and maintain their properties in proper condition.

The ministry reported that following the collapse of one of the church's buttresses – supporting structures designed to bear the load of the walls – a meeting was held with representatives of the regional administration and the Rohatyn territorial community. Participants discussed measures to preserve the monument and identify the entity responsible for its maintenance.

Officials also said that the full-scale war has strained the state budget, making it impossible to fully fund restoration work at every heritage site. They noted that such work could be financed through local budgets, property owners, charitable donors, international partners, and grant programs. The ministry provided no timeline for signing a preservation agreement, designating a responsible entity, or beginning restoration work.

Local resident Roksolana Rosolovska discovered the collapsed buttress on September 26 and contacted the city council. The fallen structure was subsequently covered with a tarp.

As the UOJ previously reported, social media users shared footage of a deteriorating church in Poltava Region that is also a designated architectural monument.

St. Nicholas Church in Chesnyky is surrounded by six buttresses and features elements of defensive architecture. Regular worship services were held there until 1911.

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