subject: Romania Travel Guide - Monastery at Hadambu [print this page] Romania Travel Guide - Monastery at Hadambu
When it comes to deciding which are the places that represent best the country of Romania, no one can omit the famous Moldavian monasteries. Located 30 kilometers from the city of Iasi, Hadambu Monastery is one of the most beautiful of them, although there might be few people who know about its existence. Also known by the traditional name of "The Skete of Dealul Mare", this monastery of monks has a great history, surviving over years of ruin and a fire. The monastery was built by the Greek cellarer Iani Hadambu, who in the year of 1659 had received from voivode Gheorghe Ghica a land "in the forest of Iasi, at the place called Dealul Mare (meaning High Hill)". What Iani Hadambu did was to renew an old wooden church, thus respecting a Romanian tradition, which says one always has to build a new church on the same spot or close to an old one. When it was first built, the church looked like a citadel, with traverses and four bulwarks. It had been built with secure methods of defense out of two reasons: to protect the monastery's goods from the invaders and out of the need of defense in a time when the Turkish subjugation didn't allow the construction of exclusively military citadels. Out of the four bulwarks, only two survived. In one of them, the visitors can admire the Icon of Saint John the Baptist. Being one of the most representative buildings for the seventeenth century's architecture, the monastery has its feast day "The Feast of the Nativity of the Holy Virgin and Mother of God". The church is not that big, it has been strengthened with ferro-concrete beams and the windows have gothic framings. Some gothic elements can also be found in the architecture of the old church.
Left in ruin for many years, the monastery has only been refurbished in the late 10-15 years. One of the newest constructions is the large building of the guest chamber, which is impressive through its dimensions, being able to accommodate up to 500 pilgrims. The new church has as feast day "The Protecting Veil of the Mother of God" and it is a masterpiece of the eclectic architecture, similar to the style belonging to Stephen the Great. It is a tall and slender edifice, its interior being painted in the al fresco technique. Here, the visitors can find the Icon of the Mother of God with the Child, which is considered to be wonder-working since it is myrrh-steamer. The icon was painted in the year of 1938, by the priest Octavian Zmu. Later on, it was covered in silver, the crowns being made of gold, decorated with precious stones rubies, sapphires and emeralds.
Hadambu Monastery is the perfect place of spending a quiet Sunday, listening to the service which is held in the court of the old church. Behind the monastery, there is a small lake above which there is a bridge from where visitors can admire the holy edifice through the rich willow branches.
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