Description of the attraction
The story of the appearance of the chapel of the Holy Virgin Mary, which the locals call the temple on the Vineyards, is rather unusual. In 1314, a plague epidemic came to Zelena Guru. After the death of 7 people, about a hundred townspeople decided to take refuge in the vineyards outside the city and wait out the terrible period. In gratitude for their salvation, people brought stones to the nearest hill, from which they built a chapel dedicated to the Mother of God.
The first building of the temple was built of wood. True, it rested on a stone foundation, which came in handy several centuries later, when it was decided to replace the wooden building with a stone church. In the 70s of the XIX century, the chapel became the property of the Zelenogur winemaker, who decided to place a wine cellar in it. So, under the holy vaults, drunken drinks poured down the river. Local residents were not surprised by such changes and did not refuse to visit the restaurant. The owner, and then his heirs, increased their wealth. Probably, no one would have remembered the true purpose of the chapel, if not for the Second World War, which put everything in its place. After 1947, the chapel of the Nativity of the Virgin Mary was renovated and returned to the faithful. Another reconstruction took place in 1951. Previously, the chapel was surrounded by vineyards, now there are residential buildings around it. The modest building of the Chapel of the Nativity of the Virgin Mary is lost against the background of the more majestic Church of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross, erected next door. The chapel offers a magnificent view of the wooded slopes of the surrounding hills.
