World Heritage
Wooden Tserkvas of the Carpathian Region in Poland and Ukraine
Situated in the eastern fringe of Central Europe the transnational property numbers a selection of sixteen tserkvas churches They were built of horizontal wooden logs between the 16 th and 19 th centuries by communities of Orthodox and Greek Catholic faiths The tserkvas bear testimony to a distinct building tradition rooted in Orthodox ecclesiastic design interwoven with elements of local tradition and symbolic references to their communities cosmogony The tserkva s are built on a tripartite plan surmounted by open quadrilateral or octagonal domes and cupolas Integral to tserkvas are iconostasis screens interior polychrome decorations and other historic furnishings Important elements of some tserkvas include wooden bell towers churchyards gatehouses and graveyards
Ukraine, Poland -