Abbeys monasteries and convents Romania

Founded in 1715 by the erudite Metropolitan Antim, this is one of Bucharest's most beautiful monasteries. You'll notice the characteristic Brâncovenesc style, the discreet but rich floral carvings, as well as beautiful Nativity paintings (dating from 1812, like many of its buildings). The monastery is concealed by the blocks of flats built in the 1980s. To erect them, the block housing the monks was moved 20 m. The surrounding streets, which escaped destruction, offer a glimpse of the district's past charm.

5 km south of Agapia, in the village of Văratec, this monastery, all white in the middle of a pretty landscape, was built in 1795 and its church in 1808. The latter is striking, with its two slender, round towers. The charming complex is occupied by nuns, who keep the site beautifully in bloom. You'll see many magnificent icons. The village of Văratec itself is very pleasant, with its traditional houses. It is home to the tomb of poet Veronica Micle, Mihai Eminescu's great love.

Surrounded by an imposing fortification wall, it was built between 1690 and 1695 by Prince Mihai Cantacuzino, on his return from a pilgrimage to Jerusalem and Sinai, hence its name. A new church with a red façade is part of the ensemble. It was restored in 1903 by the French architect Lecomte du Nouÿ, who modernized it by adding ceramics, enamels and paintings. The older, smaller church is in the Brâncovenesc style. The Sinaia monastery is also home to the first Bible translated into Romanian (written in Cyrillic), dating from 1668.

This is the northernmost of the Bucovina monasteries. Its enchanting setting, among forests and hills, is worth a visit in itself. It houses the tomb of the founder of many of Moldavia's religious buildings, Ștefan cel Mare (Stephen the Great), making it a mecca for Romanian patriotism. In fact, you'll be greeted by a statue of national poet Mihai Eminescu, erected in memory of his 1871 speech, delivered right here, in which he declared, "Let's make Putna the Jerusalem of Romania." Built in 1469, this is Ștefan cel Mare's first fortified construction. It has undergone numerous alterations and restorations over the centuries, not least following the terrible fire that ravaged it two years after construction was completed. Of the original construction, only the Treasure Tower on the west wall remains. The present church, 35 m high, dates from 1662. The pyramidal roofs of its towers echo those of the well.

The builder's tomb is a fine Carrara marble ensemble, surmounted by a baldachin (which distinguishes it from the tombs of his two successive wives) and decorated with the aurochs' head, Moldavia's emblem. He had decided to rest here as soon as construction of the complex began, and supervised the construction of his tomb himself.

The Putna monastery, now home to a community of monks, was also an important cultural center, as evidenced by the remarkable collection of embroidery and illuminated manuscripts on display in the museum.

Situated 5 km south of Gura Humorului, it's the most visited monastery in Bucovina, and it's not uncommon to have to queue for admission in the middle of summer. Its popularity and multiple titles (the most famous being "the Sistine Chapel of the East") are justified, however. This monastery was erected by Ștefan cel Mare in 1488, in just twenty-one days, according to legend. In fact, the bells, still in use, date back to the time of the famous Moldavian voivode! The walls of the Sfântul Gheorghe church, in typical Moldavian style, feature the most beautiful fresco in Bucovina, the very fresco that earned it the nickname of the Sistine Chapel: the Last Judgment covers the entire western wall of the veranda. This recurring scene in the monasteries of Bukovina is here detailed to the extreme. You'll recognize Jesus judging the living and the dead, the gates of Paradise, Adam and Eve and the paths that sinners and the righteous will take towards Hell or Paradise. These sinners are depicted, for the first time, according to their ethnic origin (Turks, Tatars, Armenians, Jews). All the exterior murals were painted in 1547, under Petru Rareș.

The place is famous for the color known as "Voroneț blue", which fascinates with its unique transparency and whose manufacturing secret remains untold. This blue background wonderfully brings out the details of the many richly colored figures, religious personalities or local figures. Peasants are also recognizable.

It was founded by Petru Rareș in 1532, not far from a 1410 church built by Alexandru cel Bun and later destroyed by a landslide (its ruins are still visible, 500 m away). While most of the monasteries in the region have suffered much destruction, Moldovița has preserved all of its original buildings. The Buna Vestire (Good News) church is surrounded by a bucolic, delicately flowered garden, enclosed by an imposing 6-metre-high, quadrilateral perimeter wall. This makes the church all the more impressive.

The interior and exterior paintings date from 1537. Inside, you'll see, among others, a votive painting of Petru Rareș and his family offering the model of the church to Christ. Outside, the painting on the south façade is particularly well preserved. The themes depicted are the Tree of Jesse, the Hymn to the Virgin and, below, the Siege of Constantinople (where you'll notice the use of perspective).

A small museum is housed in the former treasure house. Built by Metropolitan Efrem in 1612, it also housed a school for copyists and miniaturists. From the reign of Alexandru cel Bun until the ^18th century, the Moldovița monastery functioned as an important cultural center, where church books were copied and decorated. The most precious manuscripts date from the ^15th century. The museum's centerpiece is Petru Rareș's carved wooden throne. Also on display are icons, embroidery, old books..

A masterpiece of architecture, this Byzantine-style church with its twisted towers was erected in 1517 by Prince Neagoe Basarab on the site of a former 14th-century monastery. The work of master mason Manole, it has been redesigned and restored several times. Its present appearance is due to the French architect André Lecomte du Nouÿ who, from 1875, restored it to its former beauty. At that time, the building was practically in a state of ruin, following earthquakes and fires at the beginning of the 19th century. The interior is superb, with its gilded oil paintings. The original frescoes have been largely replaced and fragments can be seen in the Bucharest History Museum. The church also houses the tombs of its founder as well as those in white marble of the royal couples Carol I (1866-1914) and his wife Elisabeth, and Ferdinand (1914-1927) and Queen Mary. They were joined in 2003 by King Carol II, who died in exile. The exterior is incredibly rich, the stone is chiseled to the extreme with oriental motifs, representing plants or birds. Opposite the church, the episcopal palace, all in red brick, dates from 1890.

Legend has it that Manole had his wife walled up in the church, in the hope of breaking the curse that had struck the building site. He himself was sequestered there and, trying to escape, he crashed to the ground, causing a fountain to gush forth, visible at the entrance to the park that bears his name.

The monastery is named after the hermit Agapie, who retired to the area in the ^14th century. Built between 1642 and 1647 on the initiative of Gavril, brother of the Prince of Moldavia Vasile Lupu, the monastery has undergone numerous alterations that have modified its original structure. The church has often been damaged, most recently by the earthquake of 1977. Its interior frescoes, dating from 1861, are the work of the famous Romanian painter Nicolae Grigorescu. He also signed some superb icons, presented in the museum, among other remarkable works.

The Sucevița monastery was founded by the Movilă family in 1581 (church) and completed in 1601 (enclosure). Flanked by towers with pointed roofs, the 6-meter-high, 3-meter-thick surrounding walls form an almost perfect quadrilateral (100 x 104 meters). The central church is entirely covered with exterior frescoes (the best preserved in Bucovina), dominated by green and red. Executed by the brothers Ion and Sofronie in 1596, they feature an impressive number of biblical characters. Saints, prophets, chroniclers and martyrs number in the hundreds, and their expressions are so elaborate and varied that they deserve to be viewed face by face, the succession of scenes giving the impression of reading a book. The fresco known as the Ladder of St. John Climacus (or Ladder of Virtues and Vices) is considered one of the most beautiful. It represents the 32 stages one must pass through after death. Only those who have never sinned reach the top of the ladder, paradise.

The Museum of Religious Art, housed in a small house, boasts one of the country's richest collections of medieval art. It contains superb ^15th-16th century wood and stone carvings, paintings and manuscripts donated to the monastery by the founders and their descendants. In particular, you'll see superb embroidery in gold, silver, silk and pearls, including precious embroidered portraits of the brothers Ieremia and Simion Movilă, who ruled Moldavia.

It lies 6 km north of Gura Humorului, in the village of Mănăstirea Humorului. Built in the ^16th century, this monastery is renowned for its frescoes attributed to Toma de Suceava, where red and gold dominate. The church, modest in size, is in classic Moldavian style. Its carved and gilded wooden iconostasis is an exceptional piece; the four icons in the first register date from the time of Petru Rareș. Interiors (superb superimposed arches) and exteriors (Moldavia's first open veranda) of the building are decorated with traditional Orthodox paintings, in Byzantine style. The interior paintings are among the finest in Moldavia.
The main themes of the exterior paintings are the Tree of Jesse, the Prodigal Son and the Siege of Constantinople (on the south façade, which is very well preserved). The frescoes on the north and west walls, on the other hand, are badly damaged. Near the entrance, the twenty-four stanzas of the hymn to the Virgin still retain their vivid colors and fine drawing.

The site was once fortified, but since its destruction by the Austrians in 1785, all that remains are a few sections of the surrounding walls and an imposing, pointed watchtower (1641), later transformed into a bell tower.

At the time of its foundation, the monastery was occupied by monks. In 1785, when Bucovina was annexed to the Habsburg Empire, it was dismantled, like most of the monasteries in the region, and only regained its function as a monastery in 1992, becoming a convent for nuns.

On a tiny island to the north of the lake lies this monastery, founded around the beginning of the ^15th century by the Wallachian prince Mircea the Elder (Mircea cel Bătrân). The monastery church, a handsome brick edifice, is in the Byzantine style. Its interiors are covered with frescoes. Vlad Țepeș, the voivode who inspired the character of Dracula, had defensive walls, a bridge and a prison built here. Legend even has it that he was buried there, but to date no evidence has confirmed this. The island can be reached by footbridge or by boat.

Stop in his charming 1386-year-old Monastère monastery. At the foot of a cliff, this building has the particularity of being partially carved in a rock.

The icon in its midst is, it seems, miraculous. A few minutes walk is necessary to access it, but the site is worth a visit.

This all-white monastery was built in 1602 by the boyar Nestor Ureche and rebuilt in 1825 after a fire. The Church of St. John the Baptist is distinguished by the addition of Wallachian elements, a style accentuated by ^19th-century renovations. At that time, a veranda was also added and the enclosure reinforced. The site has been beautifully renovated, and you'll want to visit all the little monastic cells lining the flower-filled wooden balconies. Good news: you can even sleep in them! The museum exhibits embroidery, religious objects, carpets and old books.

25 km south of Târgu Neamț, in the direction of Piatra Neamț, this pretty monastery of monks is located in a secluded and superb spot, in the heart of the forest. The complex was founded in the 18th^century but extensively restored in 1867. Its imposing church features a blend of Byzantine, Moldavian and Transylvanian styles. Take a path through the forest and after 1.5 km you'll come to the Horaicioara hermitage and Lake Cuejdel, one of the country's largest natural dam lakes, formed a few decades ago by successive landslides.

20 km east of Avrig, not far from the banks of the Olt river, the monastery of Cârța was built in the early ^13th century by Cistercian monks. Ravaged in 1241 by the Tatars, it was rebuilt, then abandoned in the ^15th century on the orders of King Mathias Corvin, in the face of the Ottoman threat. Only the choir of the abbey church (transformed in the ^18th century), the entrance tower and the ruins of the monastery itself remain of the complex, which is Gothic in style with Romanesque remains. Today, the abbey church is used by the Saxon Lutheran community.

Near Snagov, on the shores of Lake Căldărușani, this monastery was built by Prince Matei Basarab in the ^17th century. It notably housed music and painting schools, where Nicolae Grigorescu, the famous Romanian painter, studied between 1854 and 1855. Inside, the collection of religious objects includes icons from the ^18th century and others painted by Grigorescu. Access is difficult without a car. From Bucharest, take the Ploiești road, turn right at Balotești and then left towards Lipia; from Snagov, follow road 101C past Lipia.

The monastery was built in 1645 by the wealthy boyar Danciu Pârâianu. Access is through a large carved wooden portal. A tree-lined driveway leads to the buildings. In the center of the courtyard, surrounded by beautiful white buildings with flowers, is the small monastery church. The interior is particularly rich, with touches of Brâncovenesc architecture, icons and ^18th-century murals. The monastery boasts a rich collection of 600 icons on wood and glass from the ^18th and ^19th centuries.

It is especially for this magnificent building that one comes to Horezu. It is located 5 km north-east of the village, in Romanii de Jos, in the middle of a beautiful landscape of medium mountains covered with forests. It can be reached by climbing a beautiful tree-lined driveway. Built by the Wallachian voivode Constantine Brâncoveanu between 1690 and 1697, this monastery, the largest religious complex he built, sums up very well the architecture and style desired by the prince, both sober and sumptuous. The exterior galleries with sculpted pillars and white monastic cells surround two courtyards.

In the centre of the second courtyard is the large church (1694), the outer walls of which are decorated with sculptures. The interior is decorated with beautiful, brightly coloured paintings, including religious scenes. In the pronaos there is a portrait gallery, where Brâncoveanu, surrounded by his relatives and ancestors, can be recognised. The prince had planned to turn this church into the family necropolis, as evidenced by his carved marble tomb, also located in the pronaos. Beheaded by the Ottomans, the voivode was finally buried in the new Church of St. George in Bucharest. The monastery also housed a cultural centre in the 17th and 18th centuries, where people came to learn painting and sculpture. It was restored between 1960 and 1975 and more recently after its inscription on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1995.

The monastery museum exhibits works painted on wood and old books.

3 km north of Frâncești, in the hamlet of Dezrobiți, the Dintr-un Lemn monastery is located on the banks of a small river, at the end of an alley lined with weeping willows. More friendly and welcoming than any of its neighbors, it's sure to enchant you. After passing through a portal decorated with paintings depicting Saint Peter and marine motifs, you enter a first courtyard, full of flowers, with a well and beautiful white monastic buildings. Passing under another porch and next to an unexpected sea anchor (the monastery protects sailors and aviators, who come here to meditate), you enter the second, smaller courtyard, which houses the most recent church, with its beautifully decorated walls. A little further up, past the Pope's house, orchards and frolicking cats, you come to a small wooden chapel surrounded by tall, old oak trees. The chapel, founded in 1635, gave its name to the monastery. Indeed, Dintr-un Lemn means "of a single wood", and it is said that the trunk of a single oak was enough to build it! The paintings inside the church, a little darkened by candle smoke, date from the early ^18th century. Its iconostasis, carved from limewood in 1814, is a true work of art, as are many of the wooden icons that adorn the church.

The monastery is also associated with a love story. The writer Anton Pann is said to have fallen in love with a 16-year-old nun here, disguising her as a boy in order to kidnap her.