Cherepish Monastery, Mezdra, Bulgaria

The Cherepish monastery was built during the Second Bulgarian Empire, under the rule of Tsar Ivan Shishman (1371-1393). Like many other Bulgarian monasteries, it was destroyed several times under Ottoman rule.

The St George’s church of the monastery has kept its original design since the 16th century. The frescoes that decorated the walls were painted in the 19th century.

The numerous caves around Cherepish made it the perfect hiding place for Bulgarians during the Russo-Turkish war (1877-78). The last battle against the Turks, led by Georgi Apostolov, was fought in the neighbouring area of the Cherepish Monastery. Legend has it that before leaving, the Turks hid gold and relics in some of the caves near the monastery. Many other legends of monks who discovered a cave full of gold still survive from this period.

Today, the area surrounding the monastery has many hiking routes along the Iskar river. The renowned Bulgarian writer Aleko Konstantinov referred to this area as the 'Bulgarian Switzerland'. The monastery also offers accommodation for up to 30 guests.

References:

religiana.com

User Reviews

Atanas Angov (13 months ago)
A piece of heaven on earth! Quiet and peaceful. Steeped in history. You can enjoy some magical views here. Perhaps if it's crowded it will lose some of its charm so I'd suggest going on a weekday or early in the morning.

Tanislava Gorska (2 years ago)
Absolutely astonishing place. Perfectly maintained monastery + garden, picturesque scenery all around. There is also a small restaurant with very tasty food at decent prices. What I found interesting is the small chapel reachable by climbing a number of stairs, containing the bones of Hristo Botev's team members.

Zlatko Atanasov (2 years ago)
Beautiful nature around. Deserves a visit with the train station nearby. The view of the rocks on the train station is magnificent.

Yordan Merodiyski (3 years ago)
One of the great Bulgarian Medieval monastery. Here you can spend several hours of peace and calm. Here you can see the signs of th time. Here, you can taste great bean soup. Definitely recommend .

Ognyan Nedelchev (4 years ago)
Very old and unique monastery among river Iskar's gorge. Many eco-paths and amazing cliff views nearby. Highly recommend!

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