| Bărboi Monastery | |
|---|---|
 Façade | |
| Religion | |
| Affiliation | Romanian Orthodox Church |
| Location | |
| Location | Iași, Romania |
 Interactive map of Bărboi Monastery | |
| Architecture | |
| Architect | Andrei Caridi |
| Style | Byzantine layout,Neoclassical elements |
| Groundbreaking | 1841 |
| Completed | 1843 |
| Materials | stone, brick |
TheBărboi Monastery (Romanian:Mănăstirea Bărboi), dedicated to SaintsPeter andPaul, is aRomanian Orthodox monastery located at 12 Bărboi Street,Iași, Romania.
The current church was raised on the foundation of a church built in 1613–15, dedicated toSaint Paraschiva and commissioned by thevornic Ioan Ursu Bărboi. In 1669 this church became a monastery under the authority ofVatopedi monastery onMount Athos. The church was seriously damaged in 1821 and demolished in 1829. Between 1841 and 1843, thelogofăt Dimitrie Sturdza and his family members, with financial assistance from Vatopedi and the efforts ofMetropolitan Grigore Irinopoleos, had the current church built on the site of the old one. The architect Andrei Caridi was assisted by the Greek master builders Atanasie and Gheorghe.[1] The resulting church resembles certainAthonite buildings in form and dimension,[2] and is the city's only church in the shape of a Greek cross.[3]
The church was shaken by the1977 earthquake, and from 1980–88, the exterior was restored and the interior paintings and furnishings cleaned. MetropolitanTeoctist Arăpașu began this project, and on 27 November 1988, by thenPatriarch of All Romania, he re-consecrated the church.[1] The Bărboi Monastery is listed in theNational Register of Historic Monuments.[4]
Today, in addition to hosting religious services, the church is the headquarters of the local branch of the Romanian Orthodox Women's Society[5] and of the Romanian Orthodox Brotherhood; the latter undertakes philanthropic and cultural activities. Art exhibitions, awards ceremonies, book signings and similar activities take place on the premises. Moreover, everyLazarus Saturday since 1990, thousands of pilgrims have gathered at the church, carrying icons of Christ and making their way towardthe Metropolitan Cathedral.[1] The church once again became a monastery in 2023.[6]
The church is rectangular in plan and made of valuable stone blocks alternating with rows of brick. To the east, north and south, there are small semicircularapses beneath the top of the walls, flanked bypilasters that rest on bases. The wide central dome, withNeo-Gothic andRomanesque elements, sits above a square base, and is surrounded by four much smaller domes with octagonal bases.[1] The main entrance features an imposingportal held up by eightDoric columns.[5] Above this is aclassical facade that also features Doric columns.[2]
The church's spaciousByzantine interior is composed of threenaves: a central one and two lateral ones, divided by columns ofCarrara marble topped byCorinthiancapitals. Looking inside, a harmony of arches can be observed: each pair of columns is linked by two or even four arches in perfect symmetry.[1] Theiconostasis is carved from wood and gilt.[5] The walls are covered in paintings of saints (including military ones), Biblical scenes, theMadonna and Child and theFour Evangelists.[3]
An inscribed tablet records various phases in the church's history. Inside is the crypt of the nobleSturdza family (which includes the grave ofPrinceIoan Sturdza), bathed in candlelight, next to that the poetAlecu Russo. The Bărboi Church is also where writerIon Creangă served as deacon and lived in the parish house from 1863–65.[1]
The bell tower, built in 1726–33[4] by masons fromPadua,[5] has four levels; clocks rest in the uppermost one (uniquely for the city)[5] and bells in the middle two. The lowest level has an exterior of quality stone, well worked and preserved; the other levels have a plaster exterior. It is through the lowest level that one enters the church grounds; the gate is made of decorated cast iron.[1] The tower once contained the library of the writerCostache Conachi.[2]
The 19th-century parish house is based on traditionalMoldavian monastic houses. It has two floors and a simple plan, with rooms arranged symmetrically about a central hallway.[1] Starting in 1834, it housed Moldavia's first girls' school, founded byMihail Sturdza.[5]
47°09′46″N27°35′35″E / 47.1628046°N 27.5931125°E /47.1628046; 27.5931125