Murom Monasteries

Murom is first recorded in 862, among the oldest towns named in the chronicles, and it holds several monasteries on the high bank above the Oka. The Saviour monastery is the oldest, recorded in 1096 and among the earliest in Russia. The Trinity convent holds the relics of Peter and Fevronia, the couple whose thirteenth-century story - a prince cured by a peasant healer who insists on marriage as her fee, and the two dying on the same day - is one of the best-known works of old Russian literature, and who were made the patrons of a national Day of Family, Love and Fidelity in 2008, celebrated on 8 July, which fills the town. The Annunciation monastery stands beside it. Murom is also the home town of Ilya Muromets, the bogatyr of the byliny epics, who is a folk figure though a monk of that name is buried in the Kyiv caves; a monument to him stands in the park above the river.

What you actually see

• The Saviour monastery - recorded in 1096, among the oldest in Russia.
• Peter and Fevronia - relics in the Trinity convent, and a national family day on 8 July.
• The Ilya Muromets connection - the epic hero's home town, with a monument above the Oka.
• The bluff - monasteries strung along the high bank of the river.

When to go

May to September; 8 July brings the Family Day celebrations and large crowds. Half a day. Four hours by train from Moscow.

Honest expectations

Active monasteries and convents with dress rules and restricted areas. 8 July is extremely busy. Murom is a long way from Moscow with limited fast transport. The Ilya Muromets link is folklore rather than history.

Nearby

The Oka runs below the town; Vladimir is north-west.