The St. Elijah–Colței Inn Church () is a

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

church located at 18 Doamnei Street in the

Lipscani Lipscani is a street and a district of Bucharest, Romania, which from the Middle Ages to the early 19th century was the most important commercial area of the city and Wallachia. It is located near the ruins of the Curtea Veche, old Princely Court ...

quarter of

Bucharest Bucharest ( , ; ) is the capital and largest city of Romania. The metropolis stands on the River Dâmbovița (river), Dâmbovița in south-eastern Romania. Its population is officially estimated at 1.76 million residents within a greater Buc ...

Romania Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern and Southeast Europe. It borders Ukraine to the north and east, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Bulgaria to the south, Moldova to ...

. It is dedicated to the Prophet

Elijah Elijah ( ) or Elias was a prophet and miracle worker who lived in the northern kingdom of Israel during the reign of King Ahab (9th century BC), according to the Books of Kings in the Hebrew Bible. In 1 Kings 18, Elijah defended the worsh ...

. Reportedly, around 1725–1730, ''

Clucer Clucer (; plural ''cluceri'') was a historical rank traditionally held by boyars in Moldavia and Wallachia, roughly corresponding to that of Masters of the Royal Court. It originated in the Slavic ''kliučiari'' (from the word for "key"), being eq ...

'' Radu Colțea built a wooden church on land that passed to the Colței Inn after 1745. In 1841, inn manager Lazăr Kalenderoglu demolished the church and built the present one a short distance away; both had as their patron Elijah, the protector of travelers by land. In 1954, the Bucharest Archdiocese renovated the church and handed it over to the local Bulgarian community. The grant was formalized that October during a re-sanctification ceremony involving Romanian Patriarch

Justinian Justinian I (, ; 48214 November 565), also known as Justinian the Great, was Roman emperor from 527 to 565. His reign was marked by the ambitious but only partly realized ''renovatio imperii'', or "restoration of the Empire". This ambition was ...

, his Bulgarian counterpart

Cyril Cyril (also Cyrillus or Cyryl) is a masculine given name. It is derived from the Greek language, Greek name (''Kýrillos''), meaning 'lordly, masterful', which in turn derives from Greek (''kýrios'') 'lord'. There are various variant forms of t ...

and a large number of priests from both countries.Stoica and Ionescu-Ghinea, pp. 143-44 In 2009, as part of an effort to reclaim properties lost under the

communist regime A communist state, also known as a Marxist–Leninist state, is a one-party state in which the totality of the power belongs to a party adhering to some form of Marxism–Leninism, a branch of the communist ideology. Marxism–Leninism was ...

, the Romanian Church reclaimed the building, which underwent restoration and consolidation in 2012-2015. Located at the end of a yard, the basilica-shaped church measures 22.5 meters long by 13 meters wide. It has three naves, the central one being longer than the others, with its semicircular altar apse. The small octagonal bell tower on the western facade is covered in tin, with a pyramidal roof. Entrance is through a small vestibule with a pediment featuring a three-lobed arch resting on simple columns and corner pilasters. The long ceiling of the main nave is flat, while the lateral naves have curved ceilings each resting on three columns. A round window above the entrance lights the wooden choir area. The facades are decorated with neoclassical touches: pilasters support an architrave and cornice slightly in profile. The western facade has a trapezoidal pediment merging into the base of the dome. The sides have two rows of buttresses that sustain pressure from the ceiling arches. The interior is painted in fresco, while the entrance is flanked by icons in niches of Saints

Peter Peter may refer to: People * List of people named Peter, a list of people and fictional characters with the given name * Peter (given name) ** Saint Peter (died 60s), apostle of Jesus, leader of the early Christian Church * Peter (surname), a su ...

and

Paul Paul may refer to: People * Paul (given name), a given name, including a list of people * Paul (surname), a list of people * Paul the Apostle, an apostle who wrote many of the books of the New Testament * Ray Hildebrand, half of the singing duo ...

. The church is listed as a

historic monument A monument is a type of structure that was explicitly created to commemorate a person or event, or which has become relevant to a social group as a part of their remembrance of historic times or cultural heritage, due to its artistic, historical ...

by Romania's Ministry of Culture and Religious Affairs, as is the late-19th century parish house.Lista Monumentelor Istorice 2010: Municipiul București

Notes

References

*Lucia Stoica and Neculai Ionescu-Ghinea, ''Enciclopedia lăcașurilor de cult din București'', vol. I. Bucharest: Editura Universalia, 2005,

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Elijah Historic monuments in Bucharest Romanian Orthodox churches in Bucharest Churches completed in 1841 Bulgarians in Romania Lipscani