Rock-hewn Churches of Ivanovo

The Rock-hewn Churches of Ivanovo (, Ivanovski skalni tsarkvi) are a group of monolithic churches, chapels and monasteries hewn out of solid rock and completely different from other monastery complexes in Bulgaria, located near the village of Ivanovo, 20 km south of Rousse, on the high rocky banks of the Rusenski Lom, 32 m above the river. The complex is noted for its beautiful and well-preserved medieval frescoes.
The caves in the region had been inhabited by monks from the 1220s, when it was founded by the future Patriarch of Bulgaria Joachim, to the 17th century, where they hewed cells, churches and chapels out of solid rock. At the peak of the monastery complex, the number of churches was about 40, while the other premises were around 300, most of which are not preserved today.
Second Bulgarian Empire rulers such as Ivan Alexander and Ivan Asen II frequently made donations to the complex, as evidenced by donor portraits in some of the churches. Other patrons included nobles from the capital Tarnovo, with which the monastery complex had strong ties in the 13th and 14th century. It was a centre of hesychasm in the Bulgarian lands in the 14th century and continued to exist in the early centuries of the Ottoman rule of Bulgaria, but gradually decayed.
The monastery complex owes much of its fame to 13th- and 14th-century frescoes, preserved in 5 of the churches, which are thought of as wonderful examples of Bulgarian mediaeval art. The rock premises used by the monks include the St Archangel Michael Chapel ("The Buried Church"), the Baptistery, the Gospodev Dol Chapel, the St Theodore Church ("The Demolished Church") and the main Holy Mother of God Church, with the 14th-century murals in the latter one being arguably the most famous of all in Ivanovo and noted as some of the most representative examples of Palaeologan art. Many century-old inscriptions have also been preserved in the monastical premises, including the famous indented inscription of the monk Ivo Gramatik from 1308–1309.
The Rock-hewn Churches of Ivanovo were included in the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1979.
==Pictures==
Image:Ivanovo_gesamt.jpg
Image:Ivanovo_kirche.jpg
Image:Ivanovo_kapelle.jpg
Image:Ivanovo_kirche2.jpg
Image:Ivanovo_decke2.jpg
Image:Ivanovo_decke.jpg
== See also ==
* Aladzha Monastery
* Albotin Monastery
* Cave monastery
* Monolithic church
==External links==
*Rock-Hewn Churches of Ivanovo at whc.unesco.org
*Ivanovo Monastery at BulgarianMonastery.com
Category:Churches in Bulgaria
Category:World Heritage Sites in Bulgaria
Category:Rousse Province
Category:Eastern Orthodox church buildings
Category:Medieval architecture
Category:Christian monasteries in Bulgaria
bg:Ивановски скални църкви
ca:Esglésies rupestres d'Ivànovo
cs:Skalní kostely v Ivanovu
de:Felskirchen von Iwanowo
es:Iglesias rupestres de Ivanovo
fr:Églises rupestres d'Ivanovo
it:Chiese scolpite nella roccia di Ivanovo
he:כנסיות איבאנובו
hu:Ivanovói sziklatemplomok
mk:Ивановски карпести цркви
ja:イヴァノヴォの岩窟教会群
no:Klippekirken i Ivanovo
pl:Skalne cerkwie w Iwanowie
ru:Пещерные церкви в Иваново
sk:Skalné kostoly v Ivanove
sr:Камене цркве у Иванову
fi:Ivanovon kallioon hakatut kirkot
sv:Klippkyrkorna i Ivanovo
vi:Các nhà thờ đục trong đá tại Ivanovo