The Bistrița Monastery ( ro, Mănăstirea Bistrița, ) is a

Romanian Orthodox The Romanian Orthodox Church (ROC; ro, Biserica Ortodoxă Română, ), or Patriarchate of Romania, is an autocephalous Eastern Orthodox church in full communion with other Eastern Orthodox Christian churches, and one of the nine patriarchates i ...

monastery A monastery is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in communities or alone (hermits). A monastery generally includes a place reserved for prayer which ...

located 8 km west of Piatra Neamț. It was dedicated in 1402, having as original

ctitor ''Ktetor'' ( el, κτήτωρ) or ''ktitor'' (; ka, ქტიტორი ''kt’it’ori''; ro, ctitor), meaning "founder", is a title given in the Middle Ages to the provider of funds for construction or reconstruction of an Eastern Orthodox ch ...

the

Moldavia Moldavia ( ro, Moldova, or , literally "The Country of Moldavia"; in Romanian Cyrillic: or ; chu, Землѧ Молдавскаѧ; el, Ἡγεμονία τῆς Μολδαβίας) is a historical region and former principality in Centr ...

Voivode Voivode (, also spelled ''voievod'', ''voevod'', ''voivoda'', ''vojvoda'' or ''wojewoda'') is a title denoting a military leader or warlord in Central, Southeastern and Eastern Europe since the Early Middle Ages. It primarily referred to the me ...

Alexandru cel Bun Alexander the Good ( ro, Alexandru cel Bun or ''Alexandru I Mușat''; c. 1375 – 1 January 1432) was a Voivode (Lord) of Moldavia, reigning between 1400 and 1432, son of Roman I Mușat. He succeeded Iuga to the throne, and, as a ruler, init ...

whose remains are buried here. The church is historically and archaeologically valuable. It shows features of Byzantine architecture, is richly ornamented, with a 15th-century entrance door of fine craftsmanship and detailed frescoes. The monastery is surrounded by 4 meter high stone walls built during

Petru Rareș Petru Rareș (), sometimes known as Petryła or Peter IV (Petru IV; c. 1483 – 3 September 1546), was twice voivode of Moldavia: 20 January 1527 to 18 September 1538 and 19 February 1541 to 3 September 1546. He was an illegitimate child born (pr ...

's reign (1541–1546), the original ones being destroyed in 1538 by

Suleiman the Magnificent Suleiman I ( ota, سليمان اول, Süleyman-ı Evvel; tr, I. Süleyman; 6 November 14946 September 1566), commonly known as Suleiman the Magnificent in the West and Suleiman the Lawgiver ( ota, قانونى سلطان سليمان, Ḳ� ...

's army. Also from the same period dates a chapel located north of the monastery. The inner court bell tower had already been erected in 1498 by

Ștefan cel Mare Stephen III of Moldavia, most commonly known as Stephen the Great ( ro, Ștefan cel Mare; ; died on 2 July 1504), was Voivode (or Prince) of Moldavia from 1457 to 1504. He was the son of and co-ruler with Bogdan II, who was murdered in 1451 ...

. With his extensive restoration of the monastery in 1554,

Alexandru Lăpușneanu Alexandru IV Lăpușneanu (1499 – 5 May 1568) was Ruler of Moldavia between September 1552 and 18 November 1561 and then between October 1564 and 5 May 1568. His wife and consort was Doamna Ruxanda Lăpușneanu, the daughter of Peter IV Rare� ...

is also considered to be a ''ctitor''. Thus, the monastery is considered to have been donated by 4 voivodes of the Mușatin dynasty (Alexandru I, Ștefan III, Petru IV, Alexandru Lăpușneanu). Bistrita Monastery 0037

A remarkable item preserved here is the miraculous icon of

Saint Anne According to Christian apocryphal and Islamic tradition, Saint Anne was the mother of Mary and the maternal grandmother of Jesus. Mary's mother is not named in the canonical gospels. In writing, Anne's name and that of her husband Joachim come o ...

given as a present to the monastery in 1407-1408 by Voivode Alexandru I's wife, Lady Ana. According to tradition,And an 18th-century manuscript by Metropolitan Gheorghe of Moldova and Suceava, now kept at the State Archives (Arhivele Statului), Piatra Neamț the icon was given as a "patronage gift" to Lady Ana by empress Jelena, wife of

Manuel II Palaiologos Manuel II Palaiologos or Palaeologus ( gr, Μανουὴλ Παλαιολόγος, Manouēl Palaiológos; 27 June 1350 – 21 July 1425) was Byzantine emperor from 1391 to 1425. Shortly before his death he was tonsured a monk and received the n ...

, emperor of

Constantinople la, Constantinopolis ota, قسطنطينيه , alternate_name = Byzantion (earlier Greek name), Nova Roma ("New Rome"), Miklagard/Miklagarth (Old Norse), Tsargrad ( Slavic), Qustantiniya (Arabic), Basileuousa ("Queen of Cities"), Megalopolis (" ...

. The icon was restored in the 18th century and in 1853 was placed in a new section, made of carved and gilded wood, of the

kliros The kliros ( Greek: κλῆρος ''klēros'', plural κλῆροι ''klēroi''; Slavonic: клиросъ, "kliros" or sometimes крилосъ, "krilos") is the section of an Eastern Orthodox or Eastern Catholic church dedicated to the choir. It ...

. During the year 1855 the monastery underwent major reconstruction under the lead of the famous architect

Carol Benesch Carol Benesch (January 9, 1822, Jägerndorf, Austro-Hungarian Empire, today Krnov, Czech Republic - October 30, 1896, Bucharest, Romania) was a Silesian architect of Historicism and Eclecticism orientation established in the Kingdom of Romania. ...

. The monastery was an important cultural center for

calligraphers Calligraphy (from el, link=y, καλλιγραφία) is a visual art related to writing. It is the design and execution of lettering with a pen, ink brush, or other writing instrument. Contemporary calligraphic practice can be defined as "t ...

miniaturist A portrait miniature is a miniature portrait painting, usually executed in gouache, watercolor, or enamel. Portrait miniatures developed out of the techniques of the miniatures in illuminated manuscripts, and were popular among 16th-century eli ...

s and

chronicler A chronicle ( la, chronica, from Greek ''chroniká'', from , ''chrónos'' – "time") is a historical account of events arranged in chronological order, as in a timeline. Typically, equal weight is given for historically important events and lo ...

s. The monastery's museum hosts an important collection of medieval art.

History

Bistrita Monastery has a very high historical and archaeological value. It is built in Byzantine style, richly ornate, with the entrance door kept from the moment of construction being worked with a lot of art. The most remarkable is the icon of St. Ana, the mother of the Virgin Mary. According to tradition, in 1401, this icon was given as "the patronal present" to the lady Ana, the wife of Alexander the Good, by the Empress Irena (Ana), wife of the Byzantine Emperor

(1391-1425), and Patriarch Matthew, of Constantinople. Subsequently, the Voivode (Prince) family gave the icon to the St. Ana the Bistrita Monastery. In the church of the monastery are buried: Alexandru the Good (Cel Bun), his wife Ana, Alexandru - the son of Stephen the Great, Chiajna - the wife of Stephen V of Moldavia, Anastasie – the Metropolitan of Suceava. Bistrita Monastery is the place where one of the oldest monuments of the Romanian medieval culture was created: Pomelnicul de la Bistrița. The pomelnik offers the most interesting data about the beginning of the Moldavian voivodal and church history. The monasteries are the most important category of monuments that survived the weather of the times, many of them being mirrors of the past. Around the monasteries both the religious life of the community and the culture of the nation have developed. They, monasteries, can also illustrate a military dimension, many of them being real fortresses and playing an active role in the defensive system of the country, given the restrictions imposed by Ottoman domination, especially after the middle of the XVIth century. The monasteries and hermitages built by the voivodes and boyars, endowed with a rich heritage and important privileges, are the storage of a rich treasure of Romanian culture and civilization. The historical message is made of mural paintings, ancient memories, cult objects, printed books, funerary monuments and stone-preserved inscriptions, as well as the glorification of the voivodes who built them, a part of these monuments representing a gesture of thanksgiving God for help in battles.

Other burials

* Alexandru of Moldavia

Notes

External links

Pictures of the Monastery
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bistrita Monastery Buildings and structures completed in 1402 Romanian Orthodox monasteries of Neamț County Christian monasteries established in the 15th century 1402 establishments in Romania Historic monuments in Neamț County