Berislavesti Monastery
Berislavesti Monastery
Berislăvești Monastery is a valuable monument of late feudal architecture, the foundation of the nobleman Sandu Bucșenescu and his wife Maria.
The settlement consists of a fortified enclosure with a slightly trapezoidal shape, in the middle of which is the church. The church has a rectangular, narrow pronaos, to which is attached an open porch, with six ornamented columns at the capitals and arches in the shape of a trefoil and is nominated in the List of Historical Monuments as a church with the double dedication “St. Three Hierarchs” and “St. George”, dating from 1754 to 1762.
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The monastery is located 8 km from Călimănești, on the left bank of the Olt river, in the commune of Berislăvești, Vâlcea.
On the northern side of the enclosure is the rectory house, a rectangular building with vaulted cellars. On the west side of the monastery complex, there is the bell tower, present since the time of the founder. It also served as a gate tower and consists of three large silver bells.
“In his first will, Sandu Bucșenescu, founder of several holy places, says that he built this church, painted it, adorned it with “holy vessels and priestly vestments” as well as with estates. In his second will, drawn up on 6 December 1760, the founder expresses the wish that a school for poor children be run in the monastery’s cells. Work began in 1752-1753 and was completed in 1762 under the abbot Nicodemus Beligrad. The school has also begun to function.”
The spiritual life of this settlement developed under the auspices of the times, originally it was a monks’ settlement. In 1864, for a short time, the church of the hermitage, dedicated to the “Holy Three Hierarchs”, was transformed into a parish church – monastic life then resumed. Since 1948, the hermitage has been without monks and was again transformed into a church for the faithful of the parish.
By decision of His Eminence Varsanufie – Archbishop of Râmnic, in view of the legal provisions of the Statute for the Organization and Functioning of the Romanian Orthodox Church, decided that Protos. Efrem Gavrilă to be abbot of Berislăvești Monastery and thus began the implementation of the project for the consolidation, restoration, conservation and enhancement of the Berislăvești Monastery, funded by the Regional Operational Programme 2014-2020.
The ensemble has the status of historical monument group A, the proposed date being 1754-62. In addition to the church building, the ensemble also includes the ruins of the presbytery and its annexes (attached to the northern wall), the bell tower (located in the central area of the eastern side of the enclosure) and the enclosure wall to which the ruins of the convent are attached.
Thanks Vâlcea Turistica for permission to use the photos and information.
