2) Maksym Ostapenko (Director General of the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra Reserve);
3) Archimandrite Yefymiy Fursenko (Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra);
4) Archimandrite Makariy (Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra);
5) Kostiantyn Krainii (Deputy Director General of the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra Reserve);
6) Issue creators Anatolii and Olha Lapushen;
In 2026, the Kyiv-Pechersk Preserve marks its centenary—specifically, the date is September 29, 1926. On that day, a decree by the All-Ukrainian Central Executive Committee and the Council of People's Commissars of the Ukrainian SSR designated the former Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra as a state historical and cultural preserve and established the All-Ukrainian Museum Town within its grounds.
• The Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra has a history spanning approximately 975 years, dating back to 1051.
• However, the year 2026 marks the 100th anniversary of the preserve itself as a state institution dedicated to the protection and study of heritage sites.
• In other words, the 100-year milestone refers not to the age of the monastery, but to a century of systematic museum-based preservation of the Lavra complex.
In the 1920s, the authorities began closing down and destroying religious institutions. Establishing a museum complex within the Lavra grounds made it possible to preserve a significant portion of its architecture, artworks, early printed books, and other historical monuments. Naturally, not everything could be saved; some of the heritage was lost.
Today, the complex comprises around 140 monuments dating from the 11th to the 20th centuries, including churches and the unique underground complexes known as the Near and Far Caves. The preserve’s museum collections hold approximately 73,000 items.
The preserve resumed operposhta);ations in 1944, following World War II. In 1990, the Lavra complex was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List. On March 13, 1996, the reserve was granted national status.
On September 30, 2026, Ukrposhta held a special cancellation event for a commemorative stamp sheet marking the reserve's centenary. The sheet features the Lavra’s churches and the Great Bell Tower; the print run was 40,000 copies.
This marks a highly symbolic moment: 975 years of the Lavra’s history combined with 100 years of its preservation as a museum.