Nothing about the Church of the Sign at Dubrovitsy behaves like a Russian church. Raised at the turn of the 18th century on the Golitsyn estate south of Moscow, at the meeting of two rivers, it is built entirely of white stone and carved from top to bottom. Its plan is centralised, its walls carry full-relief statues of saints and angels of a kind almost unknown in Orthodox building, and instead of the customary dome it is crowned with a gilded openwork crown. Inside, sculpted figures and inscriptions continue the same programme. The result is a hybrid, the work of a patron and craftsmen looking directly to Western Europe, and it has puzzled and delighted visitors ever since. Filmed in 4K, the programme takes the time to read the carving in detail, from ground level and from the air.
