St. Nicholas Cathedral (Seoul)

St. Nicholas Cathedral (Korean: 정교회 성 니콜라스 대성당) is the Eastern Orthodox cathedral of the Metropolis of Korea. It is located in Ahyeon-dong, Mapo District, Seoul, South Korea.^[2]

St. Nicholas Cathedral
정교회 성 니콜라스 대성당
St. Nicholas Cathedral in Seoul
37°33′05″N 126°57′26″E
Location	Ahyeon-dong, Mapo District, Seoul
Country	South Korea
Denomination	Eastern Orthodox
History
Status	Cathedral
Founded	1903; 122 years ago (1903)
Dedication	Saint Nicholas
Consecrated	17 April 1903
Architecture
Functional status	Active
Heritage designation
Seoul Future Heritage
Reference no.	2013-275[1]
Architectural type	Cathedral
Style	Byzantine Revival
Completed	1903 (1st building) 1968 (current building)
Specifications
Number of domes	One
Administration
Province	Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople
Archdiocese	Eastern Orthodox Metropolis of Korea and Exarch of Japan
Clergy
Archbishop	Ambrosios Zografos

History

The first an Eastern Orthodox church dedicated to Saint Nicholas, built for the needs of the Russian Ecclesiastical Mission in Korea, was consecrated on 17 April 1903 in central Seoul.^[3] The church was destroyed during the Korean War.

The current Byzantine-style cathedral was built in 1968 thanks to the Greek soldiers of the UN mission, who raised funds for the construction. Within the cathedral are two icons brought by the first Russian missionaries: Theotokos of Tikhvin and Seraphim of Sarov.

In early December 2018, Bartholomew I visited Korea for the fourth time as Patriarch to commemorate the 50th anniversary of St. Nicholas Cathedral.^[4][5]