EN
Your travel passport
Loading puzzle…

0 / 20

0% 0:00

Photo: Vaan Photography — Pexels License. Source: Pexels.

About this place ↓

About Church of the Rila Monastery

The Rila Monastery, in a valley of the Rila Mountains, is the largest and best-known monastery in Bulgaria. It was founded in the tenth century by the hermit Ivan of Rila, the country's patron saint. A great fire in 1833 destroyed most of it, and the present buildings, with their striped arches and wooden balconies, were rebuilt soon afterwards; only the stone Hrelyo Tower of 1335 survived from the Middle Ages. Throughout Ottoman rule the monastery helped keep Bulgarian language and culture alive. This photo shows its main church, covered with painted arcades and domes.

Puzzle tip: start with the domes and the striped arches, then fill the painted walls and the mountain behind.

Location
Bulgaria, Europe
Theme
Landmark