Curchi Monastery

Curchi is the largest monastic ensemble in Moldova, founded in the eighteenth century and rebuilt through the nineteenth on a scale unusual for the country, with the Nativity church at its centre in a late baroque style that has been compared to Kyiv's churches. It was closed in the Soviet period and used as a psychiatric hospital for decades, then handed back and restored through the 2000s at considerable expense. The bell tower stands separately from the church and is among the tallest structures of its kind in the country, visible from a long way across the surrounding fields.

History

A legend credits Stephen the Great with founding the monastery, but no document supports it; the most likely story is that the brothers Iordache and Mihail Curchi founded it in 1773, first as a modest wooden skete, and later built the first stone churches - both brothers then became monks, as Ioan and Manasie. The Nativity of the Mother of God church, built in 1775 by Iordache Curchi, is baroque with classical touches, and the St Nicholas church of 1808-1810 is classical with a neo-Byzantine tower; the whole ensemble, five churches inside a high stone wall, took shape in the 18th and 19th centuries. In the Soviet period it was turned into a psychiatric hospital; repair work began in 2002 and was finished around 2015, and about 30 monks live here today (Romanian Wikipedia, Mănăstirea Curchi).

The main sights

• The Nativity church - the large late baroque building at the centre.
• The ensemble - the scale of the complex, the largest in the country.
• The Soviet-era use - the decades the site spent as a psychiatric hospital.
• The restoration - the extensive work carried out through the 2000s.

When to go

April to October is the pleasant season. Services restrict access at times. Winter is cold and quiet.

Good to know

The restoration was extensive and much of the fabric is new. Dress rules apply. Feast days bring large crowds.

Nearby

Orhei is east, and Orheiul Vechi is beyond it.

Key facts