Ascension Cathedral, Almaty

The Ascension Cathedral in Almaty, Kazakhstan, is a Russian Orthodox cathedral built between 1904 and 1907 by the architect Andrei Pavlovich Zenkov. It is also known as the Zenkov Cathedral. It is made out of wood, but without nails.

It stands 56 meters tall and is said to be the second tallest wooden building in the world. The first radio transmitters in Almaty were situated in the cathedral's belfry.

It survived the 1911 earthquake which destroyed many buildings around it. Restoration work on the cathedral began from 1973 to 1976. In 1997, after additional restoration work, it was reopened for religious services.

MARTINA NICOLLS is an international aid and development consultant, and the author of: Similar But Different in the Animal Kingdom (2017), The Shortness of Life: A Mongolian Lament (2015), Liberia’s Deadest Ends (2012), Bardot’s Comet (2011), Kashmir on a Knife-Edge (2010) and The Sudan Curse (2009).

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