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Arbanasy Monastery Print E-mail
The Arbanasy Monasteries Sveti Nikola and Sveta Bogoroditza are in the village of Arbanasi in the Veliko Tirnovo region:Sveti Nikola-dates from the Second Bulgarian Kingdom,and was burned and then restored many times;it is significant for its precious wall paintings.Sveta Bogoroditza -in 1393 it miraculously survived Turkish invasion and destruction;it was renovated and inhabited again in 1716 and has rich frescoes from 1762 and icons
The St Virgin Mary cloister was established at the time of the second Bulgarian state, which ended with the fall under Ottoman rule in the end of the 14th century. As soon as the Tsarevets fortress of the Bulgarian king (in the nearby Veliko Turnovo) is conquered by the Ottoman troops, only a few houses of Arbanasi, including this monastery, survived the invasion. During the first years of Ottoman domination, the monastery remains a wealthy convent, but was later abandoned following a series of raids by groups of the so-called Kurdzhalii. Yet in 1680, local people raise money and erect the monastery’s church, which has survived to date. It is an interesting building for its being quite different from the gorgeous churches of other cloisters – it represents a low and longish building (18 meters long, 6 meters wide) with two entrance halls and a spacious chapel, without external brilliance or bell-tower. Its walls were painted by the Krastyo, Tsonyo and Georgi masters in 1704. Soon afterwards (in 1716), the Troyan monk Danail initiates the construction of monks’ dwellings and brings the monastery back to life. In 1762, the church and the chapel were additionally decorated with frescoes. Besides the wall paintings, a few icons, painted by the Tyavna master Zahari Stefanov and his son, Tsonyo, have been also preserved to present days. The bell-tower is brand new and stands out just above the main entrance of the monastery.

Visitors are also taken by the icon of St Virgin Mary with a silver repousse cover – a part of the silver cover being added at a later stage with the funds of a local trader whose child was cured following a pray to the icon. The icon is believed to be miraculous by both the nuns and the local people who come to the monastery to address their prayers to her. It dates back before Bulgaria fell under Ottoman rule. According to the legend, at the time the nuns abandoned the monastery shortly after the fall of the state, they covered the icon with cloths and hid it in the ground. Many years later, a shepherd boy heard a mournful voice coming from the ground at the same place while walking his herd, and found the icon with the help of his father.

 

One can reach the monastery easily by car, following the signs from Veliko Turnovo to Arbanasi, on the main road to Gorna Oryahovitsa. The street that leads to the monastery starts at the very entrance of the village. The entire road from Veliko Turnovo to the monastery is a good asphalt one.
 
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