Rozhen Monastery, the Great Cloister above the Melnik Pyramids
Rozhen Monastery of the Nativity of the Mother of God is the biggest monastery in the Pirin Mountains in south-western Bulgaria, set a few kilometres north-east of Melnik among the sandstone Melnik Earth Pyramids. With walls like a medieval fortress, centuries of frescoes and a famous icon, it is one of the few medieval Bulgarian monasteries preserved to this day.
A sacred icon copied in 1790 from one on Mount Athos is made of consecrated iron, and the monastery it guards once won a case at the Hague: in 1921 an arbitration court ruled it Bulgarian, not Greek.
The history of Rozhen Monastery
The early story of the monastery is unclear. The oldest archaeological evidence is a grave found in the courtyard with jewellery and coins from the time of the Byzantine emperor Michael VIII Palaiologos, who reigned from 1259 to 1282. A marble frieze above the main gate of the church belongs to the thirteenth or fourteenth century, and some buildings are linked to the time of Despot Alexius Slav. The first certain written mention is a note dated 1551 in a manuscript now in the library of the Great Lavra on Mount Athos, which names a hieromonk Kosma as abbot of the monastery of the Mother of God Rozinotisa.
The sixteenth century brought a revival. Around the middle of the century the present south wing and the main church were built, and by the end of the century the church and the refectory were decorated with frescoes. The south facade of the church was painted in the early seventeenth century, and the ossuary of St John the Baptist, outside the walls, was built in 1597 and painted in 1662. A great fire in the second half of the seventeenth century damaged most buildings, destroyed the library and probably the archive, and left the monastery in a grave state.
Rebuilding began in 1715 with money from wealthy Bulgarians from all over the country. The church was fully finished in 1732, and its wall paintings and icons from the 1720s and 1730s were made by named masters, among them Theocharis and Nikolaos and Alexios of Ioannina. In 1761 the monastery lost its independence and became a dependency of Iviron monastery on Mount Athos. At the start of the nineteenth century building went on, and the monastery was a regional spiritual centre owning much land in the area, before another period of decline at the end of that century.
After 1912 a dispute arose between Bulgaria and Greece over who owned the monastery. It was settled in 1921 by the arbitration court in The Hague in Bulgaria's favour. In 1973 the monastery was declared a cultural monument of national importance. Restoration of the frescoes, icons and wood carvings began at the end of the 1960s and was completed in the early 1990s, and a team finished architectural and structural conservation of the whole complex in 1981.
The Bulgarian revolutionary Yane Sandanski is buried nearby, beside the small church of Saints Cyril and Methodius, about 200 metres north-east of the monastery. It was built between 1912 and 1914 by Bulgarian Exarchist believers who were not admitted to the monastery itself, then under the Patriarchate, and Sandanski, who was killed in 1915, took the initiative for it. Today the monastery is under the Nevrokop diocese of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church and is still used by monks.
Curious facts about Rozhen Monastery
- The icon of the Virgin Portaitissa kept here is a copy made in 1790 by the monk Jacob of Iviron, commissioned by the tanners' guild of Melnik; unlike other copies it is made of consecrated iron and surrounded by ten small scenes of healing miracles.
- The monastery was the subject of an international dispute: after 1912 both Bulgaria and Greece claimed it, and a court in The Hague decided in Bulgaria's favour in 1921.
- The woodcarved iconostasis in a small chapel beside the altar, attributed to the Debar school, weaves animals and plants with Old Testament scenes, and a 1984 Bulgarian stamp was dedicated to it.
- The monastery gave its name to the neighbouring village of Rozhen, to a boulevard in Sofia and to Rozhen Peninsula on Livingston Island in Antarctica.
- The Bulgarian Tourist Union lists Rozhen Monastery among the 100 national tourist sites of Bulgaria.
- The buildings form an irregular hexagon, part of the courtyard is shaded by grapevines, and the whole complex recalls a medieval fortress.
Tours near Rozhen Monastery
Experiences in the area that you can book online with Viator:
Visiting Rozhen Monastery: what to expect
- The main church of the Nativity of the Mother of God is a three-aisled, three-domed basilica about 10 by 22 metres that dominates the courtyard; look for its icons, frescoes and the carved iconostasis.
- The courtyard is ringed by two- and three-storey residential wings with galleries, where the monks' cells are, and part of it is shaded by vines.
- Outside the walls you can see the ossuary of St John the Baptist, about 50 metres to the north, and the church of Saints Cyril and Methodius, about 200 metres to the north-east, near Sandanski's grave.
- A walking trail of about an hour and a half links the monastery with Melnik through the sandstone pillars of the Melnik pyramids.
- The monastery is a working religious site, so dress and behave respectfully, and check the current opening hours before you go. Kordopulov House, about 2 km away, is a natural companion stop.
Opening hours, access and conditions can change. Check before you go.
Map: where Rozhen Monastery is
Photos of Rozhen Monastery
Questions
What is Rozhen Monastery?
Rozhen Monastery of the Nativity of the Mother of God is the biggest monastery in the Pirin Mountains. It is one of the few medieval Bulgarian monasteries that are well preserved today.
Where is Rozhen Monastery and how far is it from Melnik?
It lies on the south-western slopes of the Pirin Mountains, about 6 km north-east of Melnik, above the village of Rozhen.
How old is Rozhen Monastery?
The earliest archaeological finds date to the time of Michael VIII Palaiologos in the thirteenth century, and the first sure written mention is from 1551. The present buildings were largely rebuilt between 1715 and 1732.
Why is the Rozhen Monastery icon famous?
The icon of the Virgin Portaitissa, a copy made in 1790 of the one at Iviron on Mount Athos, is made of consecrated iron and is considered miraculous. Pilgrims honour it every year around 7 and 8 September.
Who is buried near Rozhen Monastery?
The Bulgarian revolutionary Yane Sandanski, killed in 1915, is buried beside the church of Saints Cyril and Methodius, about 200 metres north-east of the monastery.
Can you walk from Melnik to Rozhen Monastery?
Yes, a walking trail of about 1.5 hours leads from the monastery through the pillars of the Melnik pyramids towards Melnik.
Also nearby
Kordopulov House
Melnik · 1754 wine mansion with a cellar cut into the rock
2.5 km away
Heraclea Sintica
Rupite · ancient city located thanks to a chance inscription
16 km away
Nicopolis ad Nestum
Garmen · Roman walls, baths and mosaics by the Mesta
32 km away
Church of the Holy Trinity in Bansko
Bansko · a modest-looking church with a grand Revival interior
34 km away