SUCEVITA Monastery

About SUCEVITA Monastery

The Sucevita Monastery is and Orthodox monastery, located in the north-eastern part of Romania. The monastery is located in the village of Sucevi?a, 18 Km from the city of R?d?u?i, in Suceava County, in the southern part of Bucovina. It was built in 1585 by Ieremia, Gheorghe and Simion Movila. The monastery was mentioned first in 1582, during the rule of Petru Schiopul.

The architecture of the monastery consists of Byzantine and Gothic elements. Also, there are some elements that are typical for northern Moldavian painted churches. The walls of the church are covered with mural paintings, both inside and outside. These mural paintings have a great artistic value and they show biblical scenes from the Old and the New Testament. The paintings were made around the year of 1601. Due to this fact, Sucevi?a is one of the last monasteries that were decorated with exterior paintings in the Moldavian style. The interior court of the monastic ensemble is almost square (100 x 104 meters) and it is surrounded by high (6 meters) and thick (3 meters) walls.

The ensemble also has other defensive structures, including 4 towers (one in each corner). Sucevita Monastery used to be a princely residence and fortified monastery, but, today, the thick walls of the monastery host a museum, which has a remarkable collection of historic and artistic pieces: the coverings of the relics of the rulers Ieremia (1606) and Simion Movil? (1609), masterpieces of embroidery, along with the silver liturgical vessels and valuable books and manuscripts. This fact demonstrated the importance of the Sucevita Monastery.

Due to its value and educational, religious and cultural roles, the Sucevita Monastery, the pearl of the Romanian orthodoxism, has been enlisted in the UNESCO World Heritage since 2010. 

A film by Osirisfilm.ro