Boyana Church (Bulgaria): photos and reviews. Boyana Church in Bulgaria Unusual excursions in Bulgaria

It is located on the slope of Mount Vitosha, once in a village (now in one of the districts of Sofia, Bulgaria). there is no consensus regarding the time of its occurrence; in present time, a broad dating from the 10th to the 12th century was accepted. It is assumed that B. c. was built on the territory of the fortress of Boyanos (or Batil), to which the Byzantium is mentioned. chronicler John Skylitzes and writer Kekavmen in the middle. XI century.

To the ancient part of B. c. applies to naos. Initially, the church represented a cross inscribed in a square in plan, had a vestibule, which was destroyed by the time of construction in 1259 of a new vestibule with a side chapel on the 2nd floor in the name of the Great Martyr. Panteleimon; all R. nineteenth century an exonarthex (outer vestibule) was added. An indication preserved in the Ktitor inscription of 1259 to the north. the wall of the narthex, to the fact that Kaloyan, the cousin of the king and the grandson of the Serb. box St. Stephen the First Crowned, “erected from the ground” a church, most likely concerns the construction of a porch with an adjacent church in the name of the Great Martyr. Panteleimon, and not the whole temple.

Under Kaloyan, which is also reported in the inscription, the narthex and chapel were decorated with frescoes and the painting of the naos was updated, where traces of 2 more ancient layers were found under the painting of 1259. The earliest one has only been recorded, several of the 2nd ones have survived. fragments: "Adoration of the Sacrifice" - in the apse, archdeacon. St. Stefan - to the south. the wall of the altar, the figures of the martyrs and the "Nativity of Christ" - to the south. the wall of the naos, the Crucifixion - to the west. wall, prp. John of Damascus - to the south. code of app. sleeves of the cross, to the east. wall of the narthex, to the north of the door - the figure of Jesus Christ in growth, to the south - St. Nicholas. The painting program of 1259 in the naos in general terms repeats the program of the earlier layer, but the scale of the images is smaller. In the dome, the Lord Almighty is represented in a medallion supported by 8 figures: archangels (Michael, Gabriel, Uriel and Raphael) and angels. In the sails - writing evangelists (depicted standing). Unique iconography. John dictating to Prochorus: from the celestial segment, at the top right, rays emanate, which envelop the seated figure of Prochorus, depicted against the backdrop of a church building. The badly preserved inscription told the story of the writing of the Gospel of John according to the apocrypha "The Walk of John the Theologian", created by his student Prochorus. Between the evangelists in the east. The arch depicts the Image of the Savior Not Made by Hands on Ubrus, to the west - the Image of the Savior Not Made by Hands on Chrepi (St. Ceramide), to the north - Christ Emmanuel and to the south - Christ the Old Denmi. In the apse are placed the Mother of God with the Child on the throne and the worshiping archangels (in the conch), the composition “Adoration of the Sacrifice”, archdeacon. St. Stephen and Euples (in the niche of the altar). on the vaults and in the upper parts of the walls - the Feasts and the Passion of Christ, in the lower tier - full-length figures of saints, among them Constantine and Elena, warriors and healers, in the doorway - the figures of pillars.

The iconographic program of the decoration of the vestibule is one of the most extensive and early in Byzantium. monumental painting of the hagiographic cycles of St. Nicholas, patron of the temple. It consists of 18 scenes, 16 of them are located on the vault, 2 - in niches (arcosols) to the west. wall. 2 ktitor compositions are located in the east. parts of the temple: to the east. wall, to the left of the entrance to the naos, is represented by St. Nikolay, to whom the sevastokrator Kaloyan and his wife Desislava bring a model of the church; to the right of the entrance and next to it, but to the south. wall - the image of Christ Chalkitis, Tsar Konstantin Asen and Tsarina Irina Laskarina. In a niche above the door, to the east. on the wall of the narthex, the Mother of God of Evergetis type with the Child on her right hand is depicted. On the same wall are depicted the righteous Joachim and Anna, the parents of Mary, worshiping the Child. At the top of the arch, above the Mother of God with Christ, is the right hand of God in a round mandorla. In arcosolia to the north. and south. On the walls are the compositions "Entering the Virgin into the Temple" and "Half-time". In the 1st register, reverends, holy wives are represented, in the south. niche - the earliest depiction of Bolg. holy venerable. John of Rila (opposite him St. Pachomius) and in the sowing. niche - St. Paraskeva (Petka) Tyrnovskaya (Epivatskaya), especially revered by the Bulgarians after the transfer of c. 1230 of her relics to the capital by Tsar John II Asen. On the back On the wall of the narthex, on either side of the door, the Great Martyrs Barbara and Anastasia (Week) are depicted in the pose of an orant, to the south. wall - vmts. Catherine. On the sowing and south. The walls depict the Monks Anthony the Great, Savva the Sanctified, Arseny the Great, Euthymius the Great, Theodore the Studite and Ephraim the Syrian. On some features of the iconography of the compositions of the vestibule B. c. drew the attention of A. Grabar, who pointed to Polish samples for a number of images (Christ Everget, Christ Chalkitis, the Miracle with a carpet from the cycle of miracles of St. Nicholas) and the manifestation of the app. influences, eg. in the gesture of Desislava, as well as in individual scenes from the cycle of St. Nicholas.

In 1956, during the work to strengthen the building, several. fragments of painting in the chapel. In the sails and the base of the drum, small fragments of the cycle of the Great Martyrdom have been preserved. Panteleimon. Deesis is depicted in the conch of the apse, “The Adoration of the Sacrifice” is depicted in the apse itself, the “Annunciation” is represented in the arch above the conch of the apse, at the top of the arch is Christ Emmanuel. To the east The wall depicts a bishop, probably St. Nicholas, on the vault in front of the apse - a fragment of the composition "Communion of the Apostles". In the 1st register of the south. walls - 2 archangels, to the east. side south. In the doorway, an image of a young saint, probably John Kushnik, has been preserved. In the 1st register sowing. On the walls, a fragment of the figure of the ktitor remains, which presents the model of the chapel of the military martyr. Panteleimon, and the decoration of the plinth (the inscription is not readable on the white board). In tympanums in the north. and south. On the walls are the compositions "The Crucifixion of Christ" and "The Descent into Hell", which dominate the small space of the chapel, defining its memorial character and connection with the funeral cult. On the sowing and south. vaults preserved fragments of unknown scenes.

Grabar expressed the opinion that the fresco masters belong to the so-called. Tarnovo Art School. In the process of restoration of the painting by L. Koinova-Arnaudova, painting techniques were identified that testify to the work of 2 or 3 masters. In 1912, by order of the National Museum of the Austrian. the restorer I. Bal began the restoration of the frescoes of the B. c., the work was interrupted with the beginning of the 1st Balkan War and resumed in 1914-1915. artistic M. Georgiev. To the beginning 30s the state of the frescoes deteriorated and the art restorer K. Tsonev carried out work to strengthen and clear them. In 1936, N. Rostovtsev made copies from the frescoes of B. c. (CIAM). In 1954-1955. under the hand Tsonev, work was carried out to uncover the frescoes in the aisle above the narthex. Since the 70s. until 1997, a comprehensive restoration of architecture was carried out under the hands of. archit. V. Kitov and murals under the arms. Z. Barov and Koinova-Arnaudova in B. c., the frescoes of the naos remained unrestored.

Since 1968, the church has been transformed into the National Museum, since 1978 - a monument of world importance under the auspices of UNESCO, in 1979 it was included in the List of World Cultural and Natural Heritage.

Lit.: Grabar A . Boyanskata Church. Sofia, 1924; Protich A . South-Western school in Bulgarian murals prez of the 13th and 14th centuries. // Sat. in honor of V. Zlatarski. Sofia, 1925. S. 291-342; Ainalov D . Boyana painting of 1259 // Izv. on the Bulgarian archeol. in-t. 1927. Book. 4. S. 121-134; Grabar A . La peinture religieuse en Bulgarie. P., 1928. P. 88-92, 117-176, 121-134; Schweinfurth Ph. Die Fresken von Bojana: Ein Meisterwerk der Monumentalkunst des 13. Jh. B., 1943, 1965; Miyatev K . Boyansky murals. Sofia, 1961; Galbov Iv. For inscriptions on Boyansky wall-paintings. Sofia, 1963; Mavrodinov N . Boyanskata Church. Sofia, 1972; Duychev Iv. Boyanskata tsarkva in scientific literature // Bulgarian Middle Ages. Sofia, 1972, pp. 478-512; Dobrev I . K'm talkuvaneto on the ktitor inscription in the Boyanskata Church // GSU, FSF: Probl. on Bulgarian and Russian ezikoznanie, 1979. Sofia, 1982. [T.] 71, no. 1. pp. 129-166; Bakalova E. Liturgical poetry and church murals: (Text from Oktoikh in Boyanskata church) // Starobulgarsk literature. Sofia, 1994. Book. 28/29. pp. 143-152; Penkova B . On the decoration system of frescoes of the 12th century. in the Boyana Church // Dri. M., 1999. [Issue:] Russia and the Byzantine countries. world of the twelfth century. pp. 49-56; she is. The Mother of God from the Child from Boyanskat Tsarkva: (One Hypothesis) // Osam Vekhi Hilandara: History, Spiritual Belly, Kњizhevnost, Umetnost and Architecture. Beograd, 2000. S. 667-673.

B. Penkova

BOJAN CHURCH

The Boyana Church is a part of the world cultural heritage, a monument of Bulgarian medieval architecture and painting, located on the outskirts of Sofia, and consists of three parts.
By decision of UNESCO since October 1979 in Luxor (Egypt) it was included in the UNESCO World Cultural Heritage List at number 42.

Boyana Church, known as one of the most perfect and completely preserved monuments of Eastern European medieval art, is located 8 km from Sofia, in the village of Boyana at the foot of the Vitosha Mountains, from where the church got its name - Boyana Church, among huge trees in a sunken greenery of the yard.
The eastern church was built in the 10th century, then enlarged at the beginning of the 13th century by Sebastokrator Kaloyan, who ordered a second two-storey building to be erected next to it. The frescoes in this second church, completed in 1259, are among the most valuable medieval images. The ensemble is completed by a third church built at the beginning of the 19th century. All together it is one of the most complete and perfect complexes of monuments of Eastern European medieval art.
The history of the temple of St. Nicholas and St. Panteleimon takes us back to the distant tenth century, when a small church was built on this site. The village of Boyana itself was a fortress known as Batil. In the 11th century there was a fortification that played an important role in the wars with Byzantium.
Later, in the 13th century, by the will of Sevastokrator Kaloyan, the ruler of Sredets (this is the medieval name of Sofia), the old church was expanded, a new two-story church was erected next to it, both were richly decorated. At the beginning of the 19th century, another extension was added to the so-called "Kaloyanov Church".
The church consists of three parts built in different eras. The oldest one, the eastern one, is a small one-domed church of the 11th century, built according to local traditions.

The second part is two-storied, closely adjacent to the western façade of the old church and stylistically connected with it. The inscription on the north side of the lower floor reads as follows: “It was erected at the expense and with great love of Kaloyan… in the summer of 6767-1259. The lower floor was the tomb of the local boyars and was directly connected with the chapel, while the upper part was the church. The third, westernmost part of the church is a late addition from the 19th century (1882) without much artistic value.

The Boyana Church gained world fame, first of all, thanks to the unique wall paintings from 1259 - the work of an unknown icon painter from the period of the Second Bulgarian Kingdom (12-14 centuries), which is one of the most valuable collections of medieval paintings.

The murals in the Boyana Church are from three different eras - the 11th, 13th and 14th-15th centuries. What gives them their high artistic value are the images from 1259. 240 figures, 89 scenes and compositions are painted in scenes or separately. Among them, the most ancient are the images of St. John of Rila the Wonderworker (Heavenly patron of Bulgaria), St. Petka (Paraskeva) of Tarnovskaya, ktitors and rulers of the Second Bulgarian Kingdom, Tsar Konstantin-Asen the Quiet and Tsaritsa Ioanna, Kaloyan and Desislava, who were church ktitors, i.e. . the church was built and painted with their funds.

Kaloyan is depicted as a tall man with a black beard and mustache. On his head is a crown adorned with blue gems and pearls, as required by established etiquette. In his hands he holds a model of the temple, which he offers to God - this is a symbolic expression of what Kaloyan spent and decorated the church at his own expense. Desislava is depicted as a young, slender woman. She is dressed in golden clothes, long to the ground, decorated with concentric circles and lions inscribed in them. Desislava's head is surmounted by a crown richly adorned with red and green precious stones and pearls. The portraits of the sevastokrator Kaloyan and his wife Desislava are among the most remarkable examples of Bulgarian painting.

The Boyana Church is one of the few surviving medieval monuments, evidence of the significant contribution of the Bulgarian monumental fine arts of this period to the European cultural heritage.

The eastern part is considered the most ancient - a single-domed temple of the 10th century with a semicircular apse, built in the form of an equal-ended cross. The central place is occupied by the two-storey "Kaloyanov Temple" of the 13th century. The church itself is located on the top floor, and below there is a small chapel and a crypt where noble boyars are buried. The temple facade is decorated with beautiful ceramic tiles. In the west of the Boyana Church, there is a two-story narthex of the 19th century, devoid of any decor.

In the oldest part, on the northern wall and at the bottom of the apse, fragments of frescoes from the 11th-12th centuries have been preserved. The rest of the temple is decorated with magnificent works of painters Vasily and Dmitry, made in the middle of the 13th century, wall paintings of the 14th-16th centuries and frescoes of 1882. In 1981, when the Bulgarians celebrated 1300 years of their statehood, commemorative coins were minted in the country. An image of the Boyana Church was placed on one of them.

The temple is open for tourists daily: from April to October from 9.30 to 17.00, from November to March from 9.00 to 17.00. The visit is paid.

History of Boyana Church

The first Boyana church was erected in the 10th century and dedicated to St. Nicholas and St. Panteleimon. At the beginning of the 13th century, the feudal lord Sevastokrator Kaloyan acted as a ktitor and added a new two-storey stone church to the old temple.

In 1259, local craftsmen painted the temple and left a mention of the ktitor on one of the walls. In addition, the church was decorated with images of Kaloyan and his wife Desislava. By the name of the ktitor, the temple began to be called "Kaloyanov". The last extension was erected in the 19th century. It is noteworthy that it was made entirely of stone, while in early buildings the builders used both stone and brick.

wall paintings

The first paintings in the Boyana Church appeared when the Byzantine Empire was conquered by the Crusaders. During this period, the influence of regional art schools increased significantly. The wall paintings of the ancient Bulgarian temple are made in the tradition of Byzantine masters and are considered one of the best examples of medieval art. The oldest paintings are accompanied by inscriptions in Greek.

The frescoes of the Boyana Church are distinguished by sharp contours, the rigidity of the drawing and the flatness of the image. Thanks to this, the Bulgarian isographers managed to achieve a special expressiveness of portraits. Medieval painters skillfully conveyed human emotions on frescoes, endowing historical and biblical characters with seriousness, softness and sincerity. Interestingly, each image created by them has its own character. In addition, people of different status are depicted in clothes and surroundings of objects characteristic of their social stratum and time.

On the walls are figures of the Virgin Mary and St. Panteleimon, and on the narthex - 18 scenes from the life of St. Nicholas. In addition to the ktitor and his wife, on the northern wall you can see portraits of the ruler of the Second Bulgarian Kingdom, Konstantin I Tikh, and Queen Irina.

How to get there

The Boyana Church is located in the southwestern suburb of Sofia - Boyana, on Boyana Lake Street, 3. Bus number 64 runs here from the city.

The ancient temple is one of the few that have survived to this day in almost perfect condition, famous for well-preserved medieval frescoes - the main asset of the small Boyana church.

Description

The ancient temple is one of the few that have survived to this day in almost perfect condition, famous for its well-preserved medieval frescoes - the main asset of a small Boyana Church located in the suburbs of the capital of Bulgaria - Sofia. Protect this monument of architecture by UNESCO.

Myths and facts

Boyana Church It is unique in that in its entire ten-century history it has experienced only two significant architectural interventions. It was built in the 10th century on the territory of the Batil fortress (now the village of Boyana) as the church of Saints Nicholas and Panteleimon. Three centuries later, the sevastokrator of Sredets (that was the name of Sofia in the Middle Ages) Kaloyan sponsored the first completion of the shrine, which began to be called Kaloyanova in his honor, and in the 19th century the third and final expansion was carried out.

Boyana Church is located 8 km southwest of the center of Sofia. Boyana Church is a monument of Bulgarian medieval architecture and painting.

By decision of UNESCO since October 1979 in Luxor (Egypt) it was included in the UNESCO World Cultural Heritage List under number 42. UNESCO.

Boyana Church, known as one of the most perfect and completely preserved monuments of Eastern European medieval art. The church stands at the foot of Vitosha Mountain, in a suburb of Sofia, which was once the village of Boyan. According to the name of the village, the church also got its name, originally it was the temple of Saints Nicholas and Panteleimon.

The history of the temple of St. Nicholas and St. Panteleimon takes us back to the distant tenth century, when a small church was built on this site. The village of Boyana itself was a fortress known as Batil. In the 11th century there was a fortification that played an important role in the wars with Byzantium. Later, in the 13th century, by the will of Sevastokrator Kaloyan, the ruler of Sredets (this is the medieval name of Sofia), the old church was expanded, a new two-story church was erected next to it, both were richly decorated. At the beginning of the 19th century, another extension was added to the so-called "Kaloyanov Church".

Located on the outskirts of Sofia, the Boyana Church consists of three buildings of different times. The first one dates back to the 11th century, the next one - the 13th, and the last wing was completed in the 19th century.

The first building is the oldest - the eastern one - is a small one-domed church, built according to local traditions. The second building is two-storied, closely adjoins the western facade of the old church and is stylistically connected with it. On the first floor there is the tomb of Kaloyan and his wife Desislava, and on the second floor there is a family chapel. Outside, the church is decorated with ceramics. The inscription on the north side of the lower floor reads: “Erected at the expense and with great love of Kaloyan… in the summer of 6767-1259. The frescoes in this second church, completed in 1259, are among the most valuable medieval images. The third, westernmost part of the church is a late addition from the 19th century (1882) without much artistic value.

The Boyana Church gained world fame, first of all, thanks to the unique wall paintings from 1259 - the work of an unknown icon painter from the period of the second Bulgarian kingdom (12-14 centuries), which is one of the most valuable collections of medieval paintings. The murals in the Boyana Church are from three different eras - the 11th, 13th and 14th-15th centuries. What gives them their high artistic value are the images from 1259.

240 figures, 89 scenes and compositions are painted in scenes or separately. Among them, the most ancient are the images of the founder of Bulgarian monasticism, the great hermit St. John of Rila, the Wonderworker (Heavenly patron of Bulgaria), St. were church leaders, i.e. the church was built and painted with their funds.

The architecture and exterior design correspond to local building traditions: they are modest and do not amaze with either splendor or grandeur. From the noble forms of this stone, tiled temple with flat domes, it smells of hoary antiquity and that elegant "style" by which a real masterpiece of ancient architecture can be distinguished from bulky and soulless imitations of modern times.

Unknown Bulgarian artists managed to go beyond the traditional church painting and create images that were new for European art of the 13th century. Researchers have always been surprised and continue to be surprised by the fact that even a hundred years before the Renaissance in Europe, having overcome the canons of Byzantine painting, the Bulgarian masters created images in the Boyana church that are striking in their realism, in which acute dramatic tension is combined with lyrical spirituality, severe asceticism is adjacent to inner self-contemplation. These are the earliest realistic portraits in the monumental painting of medieval Europe.

The UNESCO monument - the Church of Saints Nicholas and Panteleimon in Sofia, better known as the Boyana Church, has been restored and is open to the public. Bulgarian President Georgy Parvanov took part in the opening ceremony. The mural ensemble of the church is the most striking monument of Bulgarian church painting.

The restoration of the church began in 1954. The subject of heated discussion between Bulgarian and foreign experts was the methods and means of restoration of paintings. Disputes and lack of funding led to the fact that for many years the Boyana Church, included in the list of world cultural heritage, was "mothballed" and closed to the public. The restoration was completed thanks to private donations. The cost of the work was about 80 thousand euros.