Patriarch Pimen (Sergei M. Izvekov, 1910–1990). Signed Official Letter as Deputy Abbot of the Trinity-St. Sergius Lavra, 1952

Item #1620

Moskovskaia Patriarkhiia. Namestnik Troitse-Sergievoi Lavry [Moscow Patriarchate. Deputy Abbot of the Trinity-St. Sergius Lavra]. Zagorsk (now Sergiev Posad), 14 February 1952. Typed official letter on the printed letterhead of the Moscow Patriarchate, signed in ink by Archimandrite Pimen; 29 × 20.5 cm. Very good. Light toning and horizontal and vertical mailing folds, with minor edge wear. Bold autograph signature in violet ink beneath the typed designation "Archimandrite Pimen." A clean and well-preserved example of official Russian Orthodox Church correspondence from the early Soviet period.

An official document signed by Archimandrite Pimen (Sergei Mikhailovich Izvekov, 1910–1990), the future Patriarch of Moscow and All Rus' (1971–1990), during his tenure as a senior administrator of the Russian Orthodox Church. Addressed to I. A. Veshniakov, Head of the Moscow Regional Department of Culture, the letter submits for official review and approval a restoration project for a section of the fortified wall of the Trinity-St. Sergius Lavra between the Kalich'ia and Zvonkovaia towers. The proposed restoration, prepared by the Central Scientific Restoration Workshops (TsNRM), is noted as accompanying the letter in two volumes. The letterhead identifies the signer as Namestnik (Deputy Abbot) of the Trinity-St. Sergius Lavra, although published biographical sources generally place Pimen's formal appointment to that office in 1954. The present document, dated 1952, appears to reflect an earlier administrative role or presents a chronological inconsistency worthy of further research.

Although dated 14 February 1952, the document is particularly significant because it bears the signature of the future Patriarch Pimen (Izvekov), one of the most influential hierarchs of the postwar Russian Orthodox Church. Tonsured a monk in 1927, Pimen rose steadily through the ecclesiastical hierarchy, serving as Archimandrite and later becoming Deputy Abbot (Namestnik) of the Trinity-St. Sergius Lavra before his consecration as bishop in 1957. In 1971, he was elected Patriarch of Moscow, leading the Russian Orthodox Church for nearly two decades during the late Soviet period.

Price: $200.00