Moldovița Monastery: a fortified painted church in Bukovina
Moldovița Monastery (Mănăstirea Moldovița) is a Romanian Orthodox nunnery in Vatra Moldoviței, Suceava County, in Bukovina, northern Moldavia. Surrounded by walls and towers, it was founded in 1532 by Petru Rareș, and its Annunciation church, covered in frescoes inside and out, is one of the painted churches of northern Moldavia on the UNESCO World Heritage list.
In the 1530s a Moldavian prince had an entire church painted outside, and the colours on its south wall still tell the story of Jesse’s tree and the siege of Constantinople.
The history of Moldovița Monastery
The origins of Moldovița are lost in time. Local legends speak of a wooden church built here in the 14th century by hermits living in the surrounding woods, and tradition links the monastery with the Mușatin princes who protected it. Documents point to a stone church in the reign of Alexander the Good (1400–1432). Under him the monastery had trading rights: in a privilege of 1408 for merchants from Lviv, the place where they paid customs was set in the village of Moldovița. The monastery earned much of its income from customs duties on goods brought from Transylvania.
At the end of the 15th century a landslide destroyed most of that earlier church, and its ruins can still be seen about 500 metres from the present monastery. The prince Petru Rareș, an illegitimate son of Stephen the Great who ruled Moldavia in 1527–1538 and again in 1541–1546, chose a spot on slightly lower ground and built the existing church in 1532, with the same dedication to the Annunciation. At the same time he surrounded it with walls and defence towers, which gave the monastery the look of a small fortress.
The architecture combines Byzantine and Gothic elements and continues the Moldavian style that took shape under Stephen the Great, but with larger dimensions and a taller, more slender profile. Late-Gothic details that are typical of Transylvania suggest that stone masons from there took part in the work. In 1537, five years after it was built, the church was painted inside and out by a team led by Toma of Suceava, the court painter of Petru Rareș. The fresco colours, rich in yellow and blue, have stayed remarkably fresh, and the south wall is especially well preserved.
Between 1610 and 1612 Bishop Efrem of Rădăuți built the clisiarnița, an abbot’s house, on the foundations of earlier dwellings. He used it as his residence, as a place to keep the church’s treasures and as a school for copyists and miniaturists, continuing the cultural work of Petru Rareș. The surrounding walls, about six metres high, and the towers protect the whole complex, which has kept its original elements: the church, the cells and the princely house, today a museum.
In 1993 UNESCO included the Annunciation church of Moldovița, with seven other churches of northern Moldavia, in the World Heritage List under the name Painted Churches of Northern Moldavia. The monastery was entered in the list of historic monuments of Suceava County in 2015, and the community of nuns still lives here today.
Curiosities about Moldovița Monastery
- The church is one of eight churches of northern Moldavia (Arbore, Pătrăuți, Humor, Probota, St John the New in Suceava, Sucevița, Voroneț and Moldovița) inscribed on the UNESCO list in 1993.
- On the south façade the Tree of Jesse, showing the ancestry of Christ, is framed by a frieze of ancient thinkers that includes Thucydides, Homer, Aristotle, Plato, Socrates and Plutarch.
- The Akathist Hymn to the Mother of God is told in 24 scenes on the south wall, one for each stanza of the hymn.
- Below it, a scene of the Siege of Constantinople is both a tribute to the events of 1453 and an allegory of Moldavian resistance to the Ottomans.
- Moldovița and Humor are the last churches built with an open porch, and its walls carry a Last Judgment with a river of fire and the sea giving up its dead.
- The monastery appeared on a Romanian postage stamp in 1968.
Tours near Moldovița Monastery
Experiences in the area that you can book online with Viator:
Visiting Moldovița Monastery: what to see
- The main attraction is the Annunciation church with its exterior frescoes, above all the well-preserved south wall; take time to read the scenes one by one.
- Look at the defensive walls and towers, which give the monastery the look of a small fortress, and at the clisiarnița, now the monastery museum.
- Moldovița is still a living community of nuns, so dress and behave respectfully; the interior has a votive painting of Petru Rareș with his family.
- The monastery is part of a circuit of painted churches: Sucevița Monastery is about 17 km away, Humor and Putna monasteries about 23 km and Arbore Church about 28 km.
- Opening arrangements can change, so check the current opening hours before you go.
Opening hours, access and conditions can change. Check before you go.
Map: where Moldovița Monastery is
Map: © OpenStreetMap contributors
Photos of Moldovița Monastery
Questions
Where is Moldovița Monastery?
It is in Vatra Moldoviței, Suceava County, in Bukovina, northern Moldavia, Romania, about 15 km from Vama.
Who built Moldovița Monastery?
The existing church was built in 1532 by Petru Rareș, an illegitimate son of Stephen the Great. An older church had been destroyed by a landslide at the end of the 15th century.
Why is Moldovița Monastery famous?
It is known for the frescoes that cover its church inside and out, painted in 1537 under Toma of Suceava. The church is on the UNESCO World Heritage list.
Is Moldovița Monastery fortified?
Yes. Petru Rareș surrounded the church with walls and defence towers, giving the monastery the look of a small fortress.
Do monks or nuns live at Moldovița Monastery?
It is a nunnery, and a community of nuns still lives there.
What can you see near Moldovița Monastery?
Sucevița Monastery is about 17 km away, Humor and Putna monasteries about 23 km and Arbore Church about 28 km.
Also nearby
Sucevița Monastery
Bukovina · fortified convent with a UNESCO painted church
17 km away
Humor Monastery
Suceava · UNESCO painted church with red frescoes
23 km away
Putna Monastery
Suceava · Stephen the Great’s tomb and trail start
23 km away
Arbore Church
Suceava · small painted church built in 1502
28 km away