Dobarsko

The church of Saints Theodore Tyron and Theodore Stratelates at Dobarsko was built in 1614 and, like many churches of the Ottoman period, it is dug down so that its roof stays low, entered by steps going below ground level. Inside, the walls and vaults are covered with wall paintings of the same date, well preserved and unusually complete, in a provincial manner with strong colour and crowded figures. One panel has attracted a great deal of attention: a Transfiguration in which Christ is shown within a pointed almond-shaped mandorla that some have read as a vehicle, a claim that circulates widely and has no basis beyond the shape, which is a standard Byzantine convention. The village sits below the Rila slopes.

History

Legend says the village was founded by soldiers of Tsar Samuil's blinded army after the Battle of Belasitsa in 1014, who stopped here on their way to the Rila Monastery and were healed by a holy spring, and Dobarsko is first named in Tsar Ivan Shishman's charter for the Rila Monastery in 1378. Under Ottoman rule it became the richest village of the Razlog valley, its merchants buying cotton in northern Greece to sell in central Europe and grazing large herds around Drama and Serres, until Bansko overtook it late in the 18th century (Wikipedia, Dobarsko).

What you'll find

• A church dug below ground level - built low under Ottoman constraints.
• Complete 1614 wall paintings - the interior covered throughout.
• The much-discussed Transfiguration - the mandorla and the claims about it.
• The Rila slopes above - the mountains behind the village.

When to go

April to October; winter access can be difficult. One to two hours. The church is locked and a keyholder in the village opens it, so ask on arrival. Interiors are dim.

Practical notes

The church is locked and finding the keyholder takes time. The interior is dark and photography is usually not allowed. The claims about the Transfiguration panel are internet folklore, not scholarship. The village has few facilities.

Nearby

Bansko and Razlog are south; the Rila mountains rise above.