Built for Patriarch Nikon mostly in the mid-17th century, the highlight of the Patriarch鈥檚 Palace is perhaps the ceremonial Cross Hall (袣褉械褋褌芯胁邪褟 锌邪谢邪褌邪), where the tsar鈥檚 and ambassadorial feasts were held. From here you can access the five-domed Church of the Twelve Apostles (笑械褉泻芯胁褜 写胁械薪邪写褑邪褌懈 邪锌芯褋褌芯谢芯胁), which has a gilded, wooden iconostasis and a collection of icons by leading 17th-century icon painters.
In its heyday, the palace was a busy place. Apart from the Patriarch鈥檚 living quarters, it had huge kitchens, warehouses and cellars stocked with food, workshops, a school for high-born children, offices for scribes, dormitories for those waiting to be baptised, stables and carriage houses. The palace now contains an exhibit of 17th-century household items, including jewellery, hunting equipment and furniture. It often holds special exhibits, which can be visited individually, without access to the other buildings on Sobornaya pl.