On 14 September, the Victoria and Albert Museum in London opened the exhibition “Sacred Treasures from Kyiv”, presenting seven items from the collection of the National Preserve “Kyiv Pechersk Lavra”. This was reported by Ukraine’s Ministry of Culture.
The items include an icon, an altar Gospel in a silver cover — a liturgical book used during Christian worship — a paten for the Eucharist (a liturgical vessel in the form of a dish), and a gilded silver chalice depicting the Crucifixion.
They are said to have been made by Kyiv master goldsmiths in the 17th–18th centuries, and the exhibition aims to introduce visitors to outstanding examples of Ukrainian Baroque sacred art.
The display also features two gilded silver Royal Doors. They originate from the Kyiv Pechersk Lavra and are currently at the museum on long-term loan from the Gilbert Trust for the Arts.
According to the ministry, for decades the cataloguing and interpretation of these doors relied on a Russian imperial framework, while their Ukrainian origin and cultural significance did not receive due attention.
Later, the Victoria and Albert Museum and the National Preserve “Kyiv Pechersk Lavra”, with support from the Ukrainian Institute and ICOM UK, worked to provide a fuller account of their history.
The presentation of the Royal Doors at the Victoria and Albert Museum, together with an updated interpretation, is intended to help restore their Ukrainian historical and artistic contexts.
The exhibition is dedicated to the 975th anniversary of the Kyiv Pechersk Lavra and the 100th anniversary of the National Preserve “Kyiv Pechersk Lavra”.
On 15 September, the museum will also host the international symposium “Ukrainian Cultural Heritage and UK Institutions: Shifting Perspectives and Practice” (Ukrainian cultural heritage and UK institutions: shifting perspectives and practice), the British Council in Ukraine reports.
According to the organisers, during the event Ukrainian and British researchers, curators and cultural professionals will discuss how collections of Ukrainian heritage were formed in the UK, how their provenance, attribution and presentation are being rethought today, and how the war and international cooperation are changing work with Ukrainian cultural heritage.
The opening ceremony of the exhibition “Sacred Treasures from Kyiv” took place with the participation of the museum’s director Sir Tristram Hunt; Ukraine’s Deputy Prime Minister for Humanitarian Policy and Minister of Culture, Tetiana Berezhna; the Director General of the National Preserve “Kyiv Pechersk Lavra”, Maksym Ostapenko; and the British Council’s Deputy Director, Sema Harvey.
As a reminder, the exhibition will run until 17 September 2027. Admission is free.
“Sacred Treasures from Kyiv” was initiated as part of a long-term partnership between the Victoria and Albert Museum and the National Preserve “Kyiv Pechersk Lavra”, supported by the British Council and the Gilbert Trust for the Arts, with the participation of the Ukrainian Institute, Ukraine’s Ministry of Culture, Ukraine’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and the Embassy of Ukraine in the United Kingdom.
About the Victoria and Albert Museum:
- a museum of decorative and applied arts in London;
- founded in 1852 as the Museum of Manufacturers, and in 1899 named after the then Queen of the United Kingdom and her husband, Prince Albert;
- the museum’s collection contains more than 2.8 million objects spanning around five thousand years of creativity.