MONASTERY HÎRBOVĂT

The monastery of Hîrbovăt illuminates the hill; its whiteness, the smooth metal of its roofs and the light that reflects off it make you think it is silver. On the banks of the river Ichel, in its northern part it is next to the village, to the west it is surrounded by beautiful gardens and vineyards, and to the south a picturesque valley protects it. The name Hîrbovăt comes from the word hirbi ("hill" in Moldavian), another version rather evokes the Latin word herba (grass). The monastery was founded in 1730 by the boyar Constantin Carpuz, but monks are said to have been there as early as the 17th century. Before 1812 the monastery was burnt three times by the Ottomans and Tatars, destroying almost the entire site. The Church of the Assumption of the Virgin was built around 1816 by Ștefan Lupu and his wife Elena, instead of a wooden church. It was renovated several times between 1828 and 1855. Later, cells, outbuildings and the summer church were added in 1870. The monastery houses the miraculous icon of the Virgin Mary from Hîrbovăt donated in 1790 by the wife of the Russian colonel Nikolai Albaduyev. In 1962 the KGB confiscated the keys to the monastery and sent a detachment to destroy the graves and the altar. Icons, books and archives of the monastery were burned, the bells were taken away. The monastery became a school for handicapped children, the church a playroom and a storehouse and then a stable. In the spring of 1992 monastic life resumed there. Since then, the monastery has been renovated and a stamp of 5 lei was issued in 2000 for its 270th anniversary.