{"id":8623,"date":"2020-04-29T17:25:32","date_gmt":"2020-04-29T17:25:32","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/mircorp.com\/?p=8623"},"modified":"2024-12-03T15:14:21","modified_gmt":"2024-12-03T15:14:21","slug":"beginner-guide-to-romania-painted-monasteries-of-bucovina","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.mircorp.com\/beginner-guide-to-romania-painted-monasteries-of-bucovina\/","title":{"rendered":"Beginner\u2019s Guide to Romania\u2019s Painted Monasteries of Bucovina"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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As a MIR tour manager since 1998, I\u2019ve led many MIR tours to the Bucovina region of Romania<\/a> and to its painted monasteries<\/strong>, constructed in medieval times. Bucovina is a remote province tucked in the northeastern corner of Romania<\/a> near Ukraine<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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What is a Painted Monastery?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

These are no run-of-the-mill churches. They are Romanian Orthodox monasteries with stories from the Bible and from history painted on their church walls: masterpieces of Byzantine art. Each painted monastery is distinctive in color and in its frescoed Bible stories. Because few could read or write in the Middle Ages, these pictures \u2013 inside and out \u2013 taught peasants these tales.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Moldovita
Moldovita Monastery, Bucovina, Romania. Photo credit: David W Allen<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Today, the monasteries are pilgrimage sites for Romanian Orthodox believers as well as highlights for travelers from all over the world.<\/strong>  Nuns live and work at most of these monasteries, standing out in their distinctive black habits and veils.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Here are some notes on what to look for when you visit four of Bucovina\u2019s most notable monasteries:<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Voronet: Blue on Blue<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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Voronet monastery\u2019s distinctively vivid blue color is now known among artists as \u201cVoronet blue.\u201d<\/strong> Sometimes called the \u201cSistine Chapel of the East,\u201d Voronet\u2019s Gothic and Byzantine details dominate its most famous fresco, the Last Judgment.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n

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\n\n \n \"Voronet <\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t
\n \n \"Crushed \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n
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\n \n \"Today \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n
\n \n \"The \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n \n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n\n \n
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