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Amarbayasgalant Monastery is one of the three largest Buddhist monastic centers in Mongolia. The monastery complex is located in the Iven Valley near the Selenge River, at the foot of Mount Büren-Khaan in Baruunbüren sum (district) of Selenge Province in northern Mongolia. The nearest town is Erdenet which is about 60 km to the southwest.
Amarbayasgalant was one of the very few monasteries to have partly escaped destruction during the Stalinist purges of 1937, after which only the buildings of the central section remained. Many of the monks were executed by the country's Communist regime and the monastery's artifacts, including thangkas, statues, and manuscripts were looted, although some were hidden until more fortunate times.
Today, only 28 temples remain. Restoration work began in 1988 with funds provided by UNESCO and private sources and some of the new statuary was commissioned in New Delhi, India.
Amarbayasgalant Monastery is one of the three largest Buddhist monastic centers in Mongolia. The monastery complex is located in the Iven Valley near the Selenge River, at the foot of Mount Büren-Khaan in Baruunbüren sum (district) of Selenge Province in northern Mongolia. The nearest town is Erdenet which is about 60 km to the southwest.
Amarbayasgalant was one of the very few monasteries to have partly escaped destruction during the Stalinist purges of 1937, after which only the buildings of the central section remained. Many of the monks were executed by the country's Communist regime and the monastery's artifacts, including thangkas, statues, and manuscripts were looted, although some were hidden until more fortunate times.
Today, only 28 temples remain. Restoration work began in 1988 with funds provided by UNESCO and private sources and some of the new statuary was commissioned in New Delhi, India.
Thiksay is a village in the Indus Valley, famous for the Thiksay Monastery (Gompa) located at an altitude of 3,600 m (11,800 ft) in the Leh district of Jammu and Kashmir, India. It is a twelve-story complex and houses many items of Buddhist art such as stupas, statues, thangkas and wall paintings.
Images of India
Cozia Monastery - Romania
Cozia Monastery, erected close to Călimănești by Mircea cel Bătrân in 1388 and housing his tomb, is one of the most valuable monuments of national medieval art and architecture in Romania.
Cozia features a museum of exhibiting old art: old manuscripts and prints, embroideries and objects of worship.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cozia_Monastery
Interesting te read:
www.romanianmonasteries.org/other-monasteries/cozia-monas...
The Abbey of Kladruby is a large Benedictine monastery first cited 1115. Its vast Late Baroque Church of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary (Giovanni Battista Santini, architect) attests to the secular power and wealth of the abbey, which was dissolved under the regime of Joseph II.
The abbot's princely revenue and territories made his naming a matter of considerable concern to the King of Bohemia, whose prerogative it was. In a confrontation with the local hierarchy of the Roman Catholic Church over the rights of investiture—a conflict with parallels to the Investiture Controversy of the 12th century— King Wenceslaus IV of Bohemia dealt with the interference of John of Nepomuk who had confirmed as abbot a candidate expressly not to Wencelaus' wishes, in the time-honoured way: on March 20, 1393, the offending bishop was thrown into the river Vltava from Charles Bridge in Prague at the behest of Wenceslaus. (John was canonized as St John of Nepomuk.)
(Wikipedia)
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I have wanted to visit the famous and picturesque monastery of Kladruby for years; only couple of months ago, however, this did happen. It is a truly special place - looks wonderful, and walking in nearby woods in a search for a nice view of the monastery is a rewarding activity as well.
The Agapia Monastery - Neamt county - Romania
Mosaic decoration
The Agapia Monastery' (Romanian: Mănăstirea Agapia) is a Romanian Orthodox nunnery located 9 km west of Târgu Neamț, in Agapia Commune, Neamţ County. It was built between 1642 and 1647
Amarbayasgalant Monastery is one of the three largest Buddhist monastic centers in Mongolia. The monastery complex is located in the Iven Valley near the Selenge River, at the foot of Mount Büren-Khaan in Baruunbüren sum (district) of Selenge Province in northern Mongolia. The nearest town is Erdenet which is about 60 km to the southwest.
Amarbayasgalant was one of the very few monasteries to have partly escaped destruction during the Stalinist purges of 1937, after which only the buildings of the central section remained. Many of the monks were executed by the country's Communist regime and the monastery's artifacts, including thangkas, statues, and manuscripts were looted, although some were hidden until more fortunate times.
Today, only 28 temples remain. Restoration work began in 1988 with funds provided by UNESCO and private sources and some of the new statuary was commissioned in New Delhi, India.
Amarbayasgalant Monastery is one of the three largest Buddhist monastic centers in Mongolia. The monastery complex is located in the Iven Valley near the Selenge River, at the foot of Mount Büren-Khaan in Baruunbüren sum (district) of Selenge Province in northern Mongolia. The nearest town is Erdenet which is about 60 km to the southwest.
Amarbayasgalant was one of the very few monasteries to have partly escaped destruction during the Stalinist purges of 1937, after which only the buildings of the central section remained. Many of the monks were executed by the country's Communist regime and the monastery's artifacts, including thangkas, statues, and manuscripts were looted, although some were hidden until more fortunate times.
Today, only 28 temples remain. Restoration work began in 1988 with funds provided by UNESCO and private sources and some of the new statuary was commissioned in New Delhi, India.
Schlüsselburg - Lnáře Municipality. Former Prachens province in the southwestern Bohemia/CZE.
Schlüsselburg - Lnáře - Town of Lnar Municipality
It lies in the northwestern part of Prachens province, some 50 km to the southeast from PILSEN or 100 km southwards from PRAGUE. The easiest way how to reach the locality is to follow international route E49 from Pilsen to [Bohemian] Budweis.
Municipality was mentioned for the first time in the start of the 14th century AD, yet it has been inhabited continually since the 7.-6. century BC by Celts, Marcomans, Doudlebs and their posterity. First knights of Schlüsselburg were an aristocracy of German origin residing at so-called ‚Old Stronghold‘ near a passing of Smolivec Brook en route from the Pisek City to the Pilsen City. Why two names? That’s quite simple – the German name is probably older and means ‚The Key Fort‘, for a legendary golden key was found on the site of fort on the day of St. Mary. The Bohemian name is far less romantic – a flix plant [used as material by common people for their clothing ] was grown here in a large quantity, therefore Lnare means ‚Flix-growers’municipality‘. The English name ‚Town of Lnar‘ could be still find on a 1945 WWII memorial in the centre. The ancient Prachens Region had had its first centre in Prachens [Horazdovice, 20km to the south], than for centuries in Pisek City until the 19th century.
Schlüsselburg was a village drowned in „sea of woods“ on the shores of muddy streams in a vast swampland, which actually covered much of nowadays Blatna Valley. This bogs had been (similarily to another famous lake district town of Wittingau-Trebon) transformed into a very extensive lakeland with hundreds of ponds and lakes. Not only these new semi-artificial lakes protected municipality from health issues connected to bogs and severe floods, but enabled growth of famed fishing industry, major source of revenues until quite recently. After 17th century some decline in fishing industry occurred and much of the waters were drained for new, prospective usage – sheep pastures. As of 1840 there were some 13,000 sheep. Second revival of the fishing industry occured during the 19th century, thanks to the care of local aristocracy. In the 19th century Dr. Theodor Mokry created a breed of an unscaly carp called ‚Lnarsky modrak‘ (‚Bluefish of Lnare‘). A wave of modernity arrived with first train on a brand line between towns Blatná and Pomuk-Dvorec some hundred years ago. Unfortunately for the municipality this train line eased a dramatical outflow of locals into fast growing metropolis of West Bohemian Region, Pilsen. After 1918 the municipality became part of Czechoslovakia, later of Protectorate ‘Böhmen und Mähren‘ and after 1948 part of Czechoslovak Socialist Republic. The winter Velvet Revolution of 1989 brought an end to this totalitarian state and we are enjoying first 20 years of cultural, social and economic revival. Our two chateaux returned to local hands; the larger ‚New‘, to non-aristocratic Vanicek Family and the ‚Old‘ one belongs to the municipality. Devastating floods in August 2002 damaged strongly our valley but we succeeded in rebuilding all of it during 2002-2004. We are pleased to welcome more and more European newcomers [settlers] and visitou every year. Thank You for Your favour ;-)
Municipality is rich in architecture, unique landscape and sights, for example:
Baroque church of St. Joseph [17. century] with very unique fresco paintings
Baroque Chateau [or ‚New Chateau‘, 17. century] - frescoes with mythical ancient Gods, English-French garden [4 hect.] with a little mosque, several stone fountains, pools and rare wood species…
Chapel of St. Anna [end of the 17. cent.]
Annaberg - complex of frame houses, first half of the 19. cent. (in the style of SW German Swabia)
‚Old Stronghold‘ - at least 700 years old remnant of original wooden fort , rebuilt in 1597 as a stone-brick Renaissance chateau; first mentioned in 1465. Now hosts a gallery of contemporary art, infocentre, and flats.
Monumental classical barnyard from the 19. century
Primary school, more than 110 years old
Parish & monastery Church of the Saintest Trinity with the icon of Our Mother of Lnar [17. cent.]
Gothical grave-yard Church of St. Nicholas [14. cent.]
Baroque Chapel in Zahorcice [17. cent.]
Baroque sculptures of saint protectors [at least 9 of them]
Baroque sculptures of [11 pieces, 17. century]
The Giant Logan [some 30 tons, 5 km to the south in Kadov; protected by the law. The biggest and perhaps the most easily accessible in all Bohemia]
Perfect organised pathways/cycleways with infopanels through the countryside
For Geochaching lovers – few caches are to be found here as well ;-)
plus a great wealth of protected lakes, meadows, woods, castles, churches....
COME TO SEE MORE, DEAR FRIENDS !!!
The Songzanlin Monastery was built between 1681 and 1697 as a copy of the Potala Palace in Lhasa. It is one of the biggest Monastery of Tibetan Buddhism in the Yunan province.
Arkadi Monastery is located near the village Amnatos, 23km east of Rethymno. It is built at an altitude of 500m, on a fertile plateau with olive groves, vineyards, pine, cypress and oak trees. Around the monastery there are several picturesque chapels and from there starts the beautiful Arkadi gorge.
The exact date of the foundation of the monastery is not known, but it is believed that it was actually founded by Byzantine Emperor Arkadios in the 12th century. According to another version, the name is taken after a monk called Arkadios, who first founded the monastery. Moreover, the monastery was called Tsanli Manastir by the Turks (i.e. beneficiary bell), as the Arkadi monastery was the only Cretan monastery that had the right to ring its bells.
The initial church of the monastery was dedicated to Saint Constantine and some ruins of it are preserved in the northwestern part of the monastery enclosure. Arkadi is surrounded by massif walls that made it impregnable from the enemies and its rich fortification attracted the rebellious Cretans. Many Turkish and Greek documents are referring to the life and the adventures of the monastery, that provided educational, national, ethical and monetary support for the locals.
Arkadi is certainly the most historic monastery of Crete and has become the most sacred symbol of the Struggle of the Cretans for Freedom. It is the theater of the tragic battle of 1866, which opened the way for the liberation of the island in 1898. Indeed, UNESCO has designated Arkadi as a European Freedom Monument.
Right by the Holy Sepulchre stands the Ethiopian Monastery. We spent a moment there, chatting a bit with one of the priests. He was obviously Ethiopian and was really excited about Sab knowing a bit of Habesha and us having been to places like Lalibela, a.k.a the African Jerusalem. He looked a bit bitter and moved when he told us that the Ethiopians once used to be a big community among Christians in Jerusalem and now everything had been taken by the Copts and the Greeks. He sounded really sad about it. When I was in Israel and Palestine, I always felt like it was just the Jews and Muslims fighting with the Christians peacefully watching kind of saddly or bored the scenes of this failed cohabitation. But actually, Christians are just as dumb as it took decades to succeed to renovate the Sepulchre as nobody wanted to pay for the others, or feel like they were getting ripped off by the other Churches. How stupid religion makes people...
Amarbayasgalant Monastery is one of the three largest Buddhist monastic centers in Mongolia. The monastery complex is located in the Iven Valley near the Selenge River, at the foot of Mount Büren-Khaan in Baruunbüren sum (district) of Selenge Province in northern Mongolia. The nearest town is Erdenet which is about 60 km to the southwest.
Amarbayasgalant was one of the very few monasteries to have partly escaped destruction during the Stalinist purges of 1937, after which only the buildings of the central section remained. Many of the monks were executed by the country's Communist regime and the monastery's artifacts, including thangkas, statues, and manuscripts were looted, although some were hidden until more fortunate times.
Today, only 28 temples remain. Restoration work began in 1988 with funds provided by UNESCO and private sources and some of the new statuary was commissioned in New Delhi, India.
Amarbayasgalant Monastery is one of the three largest Buddhist monastic centers in Mongolia. The monastery complex is located in the Iven Valley near the Selenge River, at the foot of Mount Büren-Khaan in Baruunbüren sum (district) of Selenge Province in northern Mongolia. The nearest town is Erdenet which is about 60 km to the southwest.
Amarbayasgalant was one of the very few monasteries to have partly escaped destruction during the Stalinist purges of 1937, after which only the buildings of the central section remained. Many of the monks were executed by the country's Communist regime and the monastery's artifacts, including thangkas, statues, and manuscripts were looted, although some were hidden until more fortunate times.
Today, only 28 temples remain. Restoration work began in 1988 with funds provided by UNESCO and private sources and some of the new statuary was commissioned in New Delhi, India.
The sight of Tsechokling Monastery as we got down to the valley. Peacefully perched away from all the hustle of McLeod ganj
In the Great Church, namely in the nave, that has “The Holy Trinity” as its celebration day, one can see the original paintings.
There, on the Western wall, there are paintings that present Mircea and his son Mihail wearing knight outfits and on the left, one can see the portrait of Serban Cantacuzino.
In the pronaos you can see the tombs of Mircea and of the nun Teofana, Michael the Brave’s mother, who became a nun after her son’s death. She eventually died in 1605.
There are barely any genuine traces from Mircea the Ancient’s time left at Cozia Monastery.
The only items left from the time of the ruler – two bells – were taken one to the Bishopric of Ramnic and the other to the Bishopric of Arges. Mirceal cel Batran (Mircea the Ancient’s) epitaph was taken as well to the Art Museum in Bucharest and only a small piece of the ruler’s tomb remained at the Cozia Monastery.
Further more, the cross pattern that even today stands on the monastery tower dates from Mircea the Ancient’s time.
Cozia is a foundation of Mircea the Elder, part of a medieval monastic complex, expanded and renovated over time.
The monastery is located 3 km from the resort Calimanesti-Caciulata and about 20 km north of Ramnicul Valcea.
It was built, according to legend, near another older monastery built by Negru Voda.
The monastery’s large church, dedicated to the Holy Trinity, was built between 1387 and 1391, and its founder was the prince Mircea the Elder.
It was consecrated on May 18, 1388, as it appears from the hrisov of Mircea the Elder.
The hrisov is also the document attesting Călimănești in Vâlcea county.
The decoration of the church facades with stone rosettes, horizontal rows of brick and stone in Byzantine style and vertical frames are unprecedented in the architecture of the mountains and the interior painting was made between 1390 and 1391. Mircea the Elder was constantly concerned with the endowment and embellishment of the monastery, by strengthening the property rights over several villages and estates.
Over time the monastery was repaired and renovated many times by rulers such as Neagoe Basarab, Radu Paisie and Constantin Brâncoveanu.
The last renovation and consolidation was carried out between 1 July 1958 and 1 January 1959 by the Romanian government, at the intervention of the then Patriarch Justinian Marina.
This is a shot taken inside Mont Saint-Michel's cloister. Mont St Michel is a monastery on an island-mountain in Normandy, France. At the top of the hill is a charming cloister garden started in the thirteenth century. Today the garden is planted with herbaceous plants.
The famous Rila monastery is situated in the deep valley of the Rilska or Rila river in the Rila mtn.s at an elevation of 1,147 m.s above sea level. Founded by (and named after) the hermit monk John (or Ivan) of Rila (876-946) in the reign of the Bulgarian Tsar Peter I (927-968), this monastery has been important most of the time since. Large donations were made to it by almost every tsar of the 2nd Bulgarian Empire up until the Ottoman conquest. Plundered and destroyed (or much of it) in raids by the Turks in the mid-15th cent, the monastery was rebuilt by 3 brothers from Dupnica with donations from the Sultana Mara Branković, the Russian Orthodox Church, and the Rossikon monastery of Mount Athos. The sultan signed a deed in 1466 permitting a compact of mutual assistance with St. Pantheleimon in Mt. Athos, and Ivan of Rila's relics were relocated from Tarnovo to the new complex in 1469. It remained a centre or 'repository' of Bulgarian culture, spirituality, and national consciousness throughout almost 500 yr.s of Ottoman rule. Much of the monastery was destroyed by fire in 1833 and was reconstructed and fortified /b/ 1834 and 1862 (in the period of 'the National Revival') under the direction of architect Alexi Rilets and with the assistance of 1000s of wealthy donors from across Bulgaria. It also became a refuge for such Bulgarian revolutionaries as Vassil Levski, Gotse Delchev, Peyo Yavorov, et al. Today it's the largest monastery in the country and houses @ 60 monks.
- Re-erected on its current site by Hrelyu, a feudal lord, in the early 14th cent., the oldest buildings in the complex include the Tower of Hrelja (1334-'35) and the small 'Chapel of St. John the Theologian' handy to it (1343).
- This 5-domed principal church was built in 1834-37 and it's a beauty, with 3 altars, 2 side chapels, a gold-plated iconostasis (the creation of which took 5 years to complete by 4 craftsmen), a bunch of valuable icons inside dating from the 14th to the 19th cent.s, and frescoes and murals inside and on the exterior walls of the arcade (completed in 1846) which are the work of many masters from Bansko, Samokov and Razlog, incl. the famous brothers Dimitar and Zahari Zograph. Zahari looms large in Bulgaria. Frescos in the painted churches at Troyan and Bachkovo, the 2 largest Bulgarian monasteries after Rila, are his work as well. His murals are bright and colourful, although I thought the scenes of demons defecating into the mouths of Turkish women with funnels and pulling their hair, etc. were a tad unchristian. www.flickr.com/photos/pbrockhoefer/313367997/ www.youtube.com/watch?v=cXeTvAmZweU At least they give an idea of how emotional the Revival period was, when the Turks were brutally suppressing the independence movement.
- "Porticos in the courtyard have Mamluk influence in the striped paint job and in the domes, which became more popular in the Ottoman Empire following the Turkish conquest of Egypt."
- "The 4-storey residential portion of the complex consists of 300 chambers [or rooms], 4 chapels, an abbot's room, a kitchen (noted for its uncommonly large vessels, [huge metal kettles; I took photos of the interesting geometrical interior of its chimney]), a library housing 250 manuscripts and 9,000 old prints, and a donor's room." (Wikipedia)
- The monastery contains a museum (which I toured) and which is most famous for 'Rafail's Cross', a wooden cross made from a whole piece of wood (81×43 cm.s). It was carved or whittled by Rafail, a monk, using fine burins and magnifying lenses to recreate 104 religious scenes and 650 miniature figures. He worked on the cross for at least 12 years before it was completed in 1802 and shortly before he lost his sight. (Wikipedia)
- I stayed here for at least 2 nights in a room or cell on an upper level of the tiers surrounding the monastery and in a cabin in the Rila mtn.s for one in /b/ while I was on a hike. The views from the balconies on the 3rd or 4th floor, near the door to my room, of this church and the tower of Hrelja in the courtyard below, the tiers of the surrounding cells, and of the mountainous backdrop, were worth the trip.
- Either that first day or early the next I hiked @ 5 km.s up to and climbed into the small, stone cave and home of St. John (Ivan) of Rila ('the Miracle Worker', ca. 876-946), patron saint of Bulgaria, which was a hermitage for the man for 12 years and until his passing. I toured the stone 'Church of the Dormition of St. John' (built no later than 1385, renovated in 1820) which is handy to the cave and contains the saint's grave in a corner of the narthex (which I don't recall). And I saw the rock by which he prayed daily (with nice views) and the spring next to the cave's entrance where there's a little shrine. www.youtube.com/watch?v=WxUw2EE8G-o www.youtube.com/watch?v=14whvoGMNQs
- It was here at Rila that I met and befriended a couple who I'd run into again at a monastery near Ohrid and who would visit me in Toronto 3 yr.s later and who I would chauffeur up to and @ Manitoulin island (I took this shot and the next 2 in this stream in their company: flickr.com/photos/97924400@N00/3283393360/in/dateposted-p... ), Ewan from Northern England and his gf Lotje from Belgium. Lotje was a student of languages who could speak 8, and who was ambitiously learning Hungarian, the most difficult European lg. to learn they say, possibly after Basque. Hungarians conjugate their nouns.
- I met a young Australian tourist and we made arrangements to hike up into the mountains above the monastery (I with my tent, etc., he must've had one too) and set out on a trail into the forest. See the description for the next photo.
Lhatse - Sakya - Shigatse - Tibetan Plateau - Tibet Autonomous Region - China
Narthang Monastery - Sakya Monastery
Narthang Monastery is a monastery located 15 km west of Shigatse in Tibet. Founded in 1153 by one of the disciples of Atisha, Nathang was the fourth great monastery of Tsang with Shalu Monastery, Sakya and Tashilhunpo. Narthang was first famous for its scriptual teaching and monastic discipline. After the fourteenth century it gained great eminence as the oldest of Tibet's three great printing centres (the other being the Potala and the Derge).
The Fifth Panchen Lama took control of the monastery and it continued printing the Buddhist scriptures the Kangyur and the Tengyur up until 1959. Narrthang's five main buildings and large chanting hall were razed to the ground by the Chinese in 1966. They had contained priceless 14th century murals possibly painted by the artist scholars of nearby Shalu Monastery. Today only the mud-brick foundations can be discerned although parts of the Mongolian styled high-fortress walls are still standing.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Narthang_Monastery
Shigatse, officially known as Xigazê, is a prefecture-level city of the Tibet Autonomous Region of China, It is located within the historical Tsang province of Tibet.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shigatse
With jeep on the road.
The Tibetan Plateau, also known in China as the Qinghai–Tibet Plateau or the Qingzang Plateau or Himalayan Plateau, is a vast elevated plateau in Central Asia or East Asia, covering most of the Tibet Autonomous Region and Qinghai Province in western China, as well as part of Ladakh in Jammu and Kashmir state of India. It stretches approximately 1,000 kilometres north to south and 2,500 kilometres east to west. With an average elevation exceeding 4,500 metres , the Tibetan Plateau is sometimes called "the Roof of the World" and is the world's highest and largest plateau, with an area of 2,500,000 square kilometres (about five times the size of Metropolitan France). Sometimes termed the "Third Pole", the Tibetan Plateau is the headwaters of the drainage basins of most of the streams in surrounding regions. Its tens of thousands of glaciers and other geographical and ecological features serve as a "water tower" storing water and maintaining flow. The impact of global warming on the Tibetan Plateau is of intense scientific interest.
Amarbayasgalant Monastery is one of the three largest Buddhist monastic centers in Mongolia. The monastery complex is located in the Iven Valley near the Selenge River, at the foot of Mount Büren-Khaan in Baruunbüren sum (district) of Selenge Province in northern Mongolia. The nearest town is Erdenet which is about 60 km to the southwest.
Amarbayasgalant was one of the very few monasteries to have partly escaped destruction during the Stalinist purges of 1937, after which only the buildings of the central section remained. Many of the monks were executed by the country's Communist regime and the monastery's artifacts, including thangkas, statues, and manuscripts were looted, although some were hidden until more fortunate times.
Today, only 28 temples remain. Restoration work began in 1988 with funds provided by UNESCO and private sources and some of the new statuary was commissioned in New Delhi, India.
Amarbayasgalant Monastery is one of the three largest Buddhist monastic centers in Mongolia. The monastery complex is located in the Iven Valley near the Selenge River, at the foot of Mount Büren-Khaan in Baruunbüren sum (district) of Selenge Province in northern Mongolia. The nearest town is Erdenet which is about 60 km to the southwest.
Amarbayasgalant was one of the very few monasteries to have partly escaped destruction during the Stalinist purges of 1937, after which only the buildings of the central section remained. Many of the monks were executed by the country's Communist regime and the monastery's artifacts, including thangkas, statues, and manuscripts were looted, although some were hidden until more fortunate times.
Today, only 28 temples remain. Restoration work began in 1988 with funds provided by UNESCO and private sources and some of the new statuary was commissioned in New Delhi, India.
The Transfiguration Monastery (Bulgarian: Преображенски манастир, Preobrazhenski manastir) or the Monastery of the Holy Transfiguration of God (манастир "Свето Преображение Господне", manastir "Sveto Preobrazhenie Gospodne") is an Eastern Orthodox monastery located in the Dervent gorge of the Yantra River. It lies near the village of Samovodene. It is one of the five stauropegic monasteries of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church.
It is thought that the monastery was founded in the 11th century AD as a cloister of the Vatopedi monastery on Mount Athos. In 1360, when Tarnovo was the capital of the Second Bulgarian Empire and the traditions of hesychasm were popular in Bulgaria, it became an autonomous monastery on the order of Tsar Ivan Alexander of Bulgaria. This is legendarily tied to the charity of Ivan Alexander's second wife Sarah-Theodora and their son Ivan Shishman, a reason to also call the monastery Sarah's or Shishman's monastery.
After the Ottoman conquest of Bulgaria, the monastery was plundered and burned several times by the Turks and eventually entirely destroyed. It was only reestablished in 1825 by father Zoticus of the Rila Monastery by means of donations. In 1832, a firman of the Ottoman sultan allowed the construction of a new monastery church; the church was designed by the noted Bulgarian National Revival architect Kolyu Ficheto and completed in 1834. The cross-shaped church features three apses, a single dome and a covered narthex. The icons and frescoes of the main church were painted by another famous artist, Zahari Zograf, who worked in the monastery between 1849 and 1851, after he finished his decoration of the Troyan Monastery. Among the more notable murals are those of the Last Judgment, the Wheel of Life, the Birth of the Mother of God, the Last Supper. Zograf also painted Saints Cyril and Methodius, as well as a self-portrait. In addition, the main church was richly decorated on the outside and a wood-carved and gold-plated iconostasis was installed.