The current Church of Sant’Andrea was designed by Bartolomeo Rastrelli between 1747 and 1753. It was built on the trail of an ancient wooden church.
According to an early legend, this is the exact place where the Apostle Andrew prophesied the foundation of a great Slavic city.
According to another legend, once upon a time where the Dnipro River is now located, there was a sea. When St. Andrew came to Kyiv he put a wooden cross on the site where the church was to be built, the sea withdrew to give way to the new city.
When the church was built in the eighteenth century, a spring emerged under the altar.
The church has no bells because, according to legend, when the bell would ring the water could awaken and flood the left of the city of Kyiv.
The Church of St. Andrew is connected to the district of Podil through the Descent of St. Andrew.
For many centuries this path remained steep and uncomfortable, and the first buildings were built only in the seventeenth century. It was in 1711 that the road was also made suitable for chariots and horse-drawn carriages.
Since 2010 many buildings of historical importance have been demolished to give the street a more modern look.
This street is also known as the Montmartre of Kyiv and is one of the oldest streets in the Ukrainian capital.
