Hîrbovăț Monastery, a monks' monastery in the Codri

Mănăstirea Hîrbovăț is an Orthodox monastery for monks near the village of the same name in Călărași district, founded in 1730 by the boyar Constantin Carpuz. It was destroyed three times by Ottoman troops, closed by the Soviet authorities in 1962 and returned to the church in 1992. Its most venerated possession is an icon of the Mother of God from 1790.

What you see

The monastery lies north of the village of Hîrbovăț, in the wooded hills of the Codri. Two churches dominate the scene. The Church of the Dormition of the Mother of God is the older of the two; it was rebuilt in 1816 after the destruction of the previous century, finished again after the Soviet era and reconsecrated in 1992. The five-towered Church of the Descent of the Holy Spirit went up in 1870 and was built by the monks Natanael and Ieronim. Both churches were restored after the reopening.

The monastery keeps an icon of the Mother of God that the community received in 1790 from the wife of a Russian general. The faithful attribute miracles to it.

History

Constantin Carpuz founded the monastery in 1730. Before 1812, when Bessarabia passed to the Russian Empire, it was destroyed three times by Ottoman troops and rebuilt each time.

In 1962 the Soviet authorities closed Hîrbovăț, one of the last Orthodox monasteries in the Moldavian SSR to be shut. Liturgical books, icons and archives were destroyed or burned. The buildings were turned into a school for children with disabilities; the Church of the Holy Spirit became a club and later a stable. In the late 1980s the school management decided to restore the old church, and in 1992 the monastery went back to the Orthodox Church, with Archimandrite Serafim at the head of the new community. A year later a school for church singers opened there.

Tips for your visit

Hîrbovăț is about 63 kilometres from Chișinău, an hour's drive along the road to Călărași. Răciula Monastery is just a few kilometres away, as is Hîrjauca, so you can visit three monasteries in one day. Watch the name: there is also a village called Hîrbovăț in Anenii Noi district, east of Chișinău, so set your satnav to Călărași district. This is a working monastery for monks. Wear clothing that covers you, women wear a headscarf and a skirt, and ask permission before taking photos inside. A visit during the morning service gives the best impression of monastic life.