In the times when faith was stronger than life and pure love of God meant a supreme sacrifice, a young man immured his wife alive in the walls of a church, thus the most beautiful house of God emerged in the county of Arges.
The founder of the church, a voivode known for his cruelty, impressed by the beauty of the young man’s creation, ordered his servants to take the stairs that leaded to the roof of the church so that the builders who were still working there could never come down to build a more beautiful church somewhere else.
Like Icarus once the young man who sacrificed his wife to build a church, made some wings to fly, but these didn’t carry him far. He fell from the sky and a spring appeared on the spot where he touched the ground. You can still see this spring of you ever visit the church of the Curtea de Arges Monastery…
The wall where Ana, Master Manole’s wife, supposedly rests can still be seen at Curtea de Arges.
The Episcopal church dedicated to the Assumtion of the Virgin, is the most important pilgrimage and prayer place in Arges and it also rests the remains of important historic personalities: ruler Radu de la Afumati, founder and ruler voivode Neagoe Basarb, king Carol I, queen Elisabeth, king Ferdinand and queen Maria.
The church has some unique features, for example the naos and the pronaos are not separated by a door, but by a frame of a door. The church also fosters the relics of Saint Filofteea, parts of relics of Saints Sergie, Vach and Tatiana and a version of the Great Saturday Gospel Resurection written in gold by Queen Elizabeth.
The Arges Monastery is one of the main tourist attractions in the region as well – more than 100000 tourists and pilgrims visit it every year, particularly in the days of the Assumption of the Virgin, the Healing Spring Water Day and Saint Filofteea day. It’s believed that the remains of Saint Filofteea protect of illness and bad luck.
Saint Filofteea’s legend is as sad as Master Manole and Ana’s: the 12 year girl (unrelated to Manole) used to carry food to workers hired by her father. One day she gave the food to beggars instead. Her father killed her with one hit of the axe and the girl’s body remained on the place it fell and could only be lifted when Curtea de Arges Monastery was mentioned.
Alina Popescu says
This is indeed a beautifully tragic legend. I’ve heard it as a story, read it as a poem, thought of it as something that was just haunting my mind. Beauty and art linked to sacrificing what you love most. Indeed, a sad turn of events.
But then you look at the Monastery, at how beautiful it is, and you just forget every sad aspect there is! You are simply amazed.