Seslavtsi Monastery of St Nicholas

Seslavtsi Monastery of St Nicholas at the foot of the Balkan Mountains is one of the hidden treasures of Sofia Holy Mount. In spite of its wonderful frescoes and high historical value, it is still widely unknown.

Founded at the beginning of the 17th century, painted by his students and St Pimen Zografski himself in 1616, the monastery presents an inspiring fresco ensemble, resurrecting not only
the powerful spirit of this saint, but also an entire otherwise invisible and still unappreciated century of true piety and Christian virtues.

In the narthex we see the earliest surviving painted group of Bulgarian saints: John of Rila,
Prohor of Pchinya, Joachim of Osogovo and Gabriel of Lesnovo – an evidence of patriotic
Christian preaching.

The monastery was renovated in the 19th century, but in the mid – 20th century it was abandoned.

The residential wings have gradually collapsed and nowadays only the church has survived. It
is the main treasure of the monastery

10.01.2018