Onion Domes in Snow

Onion Domes in Snow is an original illustration set in Golden Ring, Russia. It lies in high latitudes, where the climate is warm-summer humid continental.

Onion-shaped domes rise above the end of a snowy lane, one gilded and one cobalt with gold stars. Log houses line the street with ornately carved white-painted window frames. The snow is deep, and at noon the sun barely climbs above the roofs.

Why is the dome onion-shaped rather than a hemisphere?

The dome shape sheds heavy snow that would sit on a hemisphere, and the shape became a tradition long after it became a solution. Log construction with elaborate carved window surrounds marks abundant softwood and long winters with time to work it. A midday sun this low fixes the latitude in deep winter.

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