Description of the attraction
The Klisuri Monastery was built in the Stara Planina mountains, at the very foot of the Todorini-Kukli mountain peak. Distance to Berkovitsa - 9 kilometers, to Varshets - 12. The patrons of the monastery are Saints Cyril and Methodius.
The monastery was founded at the beginning of the 13th century and at that time it was called the Vreshtitsa Monastery, since it was located in the Vreshtitsa river valley. Over the course of several centuries, with the arrival of the Ottomans, the monastery was burned down and rebuilt several times.
By the 19th century, the monastery was rebuilt with donations from local parishioners. Archimandrite Damyanov Antim from Berkovitsa headed all the restoration work. By 1869, the monastery cookery was rebuilt thanks to his labors, and a little later the chapel of St. Nicholas was added to it. From 1887 to 1890, the church of Saints Methodius and Cyril appeared on the territory of the monastery complex. Thus, over time, a complex of economic buildings and temples was erected. The main church was solemnly consecrated by the Metropolitan of Vidinsky in 1891.
The Klisura Monastery gradually became one of the centers for the strengthening and development of the new literature in Bulgaria, as well as the nucleus of public education. Thanks to the monastery, Christianity in this area was gradually strengthened and established.
The main church was restored after the liberation of the Bulgarians from the Ottoman yoke, and the current iconostasis was made and installed by craftsmen from Samokov.
In the center of the architectural ensemble of the Klisursky Monastery there is a gushing spring, according to legend, with healing properties.
Today the monastery is a functioning nunnery. For pilgrims, it offers accommodation and various reference books.
