Why do Russian churches have onion-shaped domes?
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Russian church architecture is very diverse, and the look of Orthodox churches has changed over the centuries. However, their domes serve as an indication of the period and the region to which a church belongs, as well as to whom or what it was dedicated.
Early Christian basilicas and ancient Roman temples often had one huge dome in the shape of a hemisphere. Russian churches, however, could be crowned with a various number of domes that came in different shapes.
If a church has three domes, they symbolize the Holy Trinity; five domes symbolize Christ and the Four Evangelists; while 13 domes are usually dedicated to Christ and the Apostles. There could even be 25 domes, as, for example, in the first stone Orthodox church built in Kievan Rus in the late 10th century. In addition to Christ and the Apostles, the other domes symbolized the Twelve Prophets. That church has not survived.