Socola Monastery

Coordinates: 47°07′44″N 27°36′49″E / 47.1288566°N 27.6135007°E / 47.1288566; 27.6135007
Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
The Socola church

Socola Monastery or Schimbarea la Față ("

nunnery. The establishment acquired a significant historical position in Romanian education during the early 19th century, when it functioned as a seminary and the first-ever institution to provide secondary training in the Romanian language
.

The seminary ceased to exist later in the same century, and, in 1905, was replaced by a

communist period, when it became a parish church. It has afterward been functioning as a church serving the Socola Psychiatric University Hospital
.

History

Lăpușneanu ordered work to begin on the monastery building in 1551, to replace an older church, the work being completed in 1562.

ktitors, with Soltana also serving as the first head of what was then the Socola nunnery.[1] The institution also housed a school, which offered training for both nuns and laywomen for the surrounding community.[1] The name, which carries no meaning in Romanian, was probably borrowed from a Slavic source, from sokol, or "hawk" (allegedly in connection to the practice of falconry in its immediate vicinity).[1][2]

The seminary was set up in 1803, during the reign of

princely academy in Iași."[4] In the same period, Moldavia, like the southern Danubian Principality of Wallachia, witnessed a revival of monastic activity.[5] In order for the seminary to start functioning, the nuns were moved to Agapia Monastery, and the Agapia monks took their place.[6]

Socola became the focus of a major education reform in 1814, under the administration of Prince

literature of Romania.[6]

The school was occupied by

Moldo-Wallachian union was celebrated by the newly elected Domnitor Alexandru Ioan Cuza.[10]

In 1886, five years after the proclamation of a

University of Iaşi (later University of Medicine and Pharmacy).[10]

Socola ceased to function as a monastery during the

Romanian Revolution of 1989, when it dedicated itself primarily to servicing the religious needs of patients at the affiliate hospital.[11]

Features

In its earliest state, the Socola Monastery church, built entirely in stone, was only as long as its present-day

Stephen the Great.[13] At some point early in the 17th century, the structure was enriched with two apses and an open porch (in the style of Dragomirna Monastery).[12] Under the administration of Metropolitan Costachi, the porch was extended to become a narthex accommodating a bell tower (built in brick), while the existing stone tower was redesigned to resemble the new one, and the windows covered and replaced with ten new and larger ones.[14] Alongside the new tower design (which echoed the onion dome shape), the era also added a roof without eaves.[13]

Unlike other Romanian Orthodox churches, Socola lacks murals, and is decorated instead with framed paintings and the usual iconostasis (both made by the same anonymous painter in 1827).[15] A set of murals, produced early in the 20th century, were painted over in time, after it was judged that they lacked artistic or historical importance.[15] The church furniture is in carved oak, and forms part of a larger collection (part of which was donated by Socola to the Miclăuşeni Monastery).[15]

The Socola Monastery houses a cemetery which golds the remains of church officials, former seminary teachers, and heroes of the

Neamţ Monastery or in Buda).[11]

Notes

  1. ^ a b c d (in Romanian) Scurt istoric, at the Socola Church official site, p.1; retrieved August 24, 2009
  2. ^
    Jurnalul Naţional
    , January 22, 2006
  3. ^ Drace-Francis, p.49; Hitchins, p.119
  4. ^ Hitchins, p.119
  5. ^ Hitchins, p.120
  6. ^ a b c (in Romanian) Scurt istoric, at the Socola Church official site, p.2; retrieved August 24, 2009
  7. ^
    Ştefan cel Mare University of Suceava's Codrul Cosminului
    , Nr. 10 (2004), p.189
  8. ^ Drace-Francis, p.111
  9. ^ Drace-Francis, p.52
  10. ^ a b c (in Romanian) Scurt istoric, at the Socola Church official site, p.3; retrieved August 24, 2009
  11. ^ a b c (in Romanian) Scurt istoric, at the Socola Church official site, p.5; retrieved August 24, 2009
  12. ^ a b (in Romanian) Particularităţi arhitectonice, at the Socola Church official site, p.1; retrieved August 24, 2009
  13. ^ a b (in Romanian) Particularităţi arhitectonice, at the Socola Church official site, p.3; retrieved August 24, 2009
  14. ^ (in Romanian) Particularităţi arhitectonice, at the Socola Church official site, p.2; retrieved August 24, 2009
  15. ^ a b c (in Romanian) Scurt istoric, at the Socola Church official site, p.6; retrieved August 24, 2009
  16. ^ (in Romanian) Scurt istoric, at the Socola Church official site, p.4; retrieved August 24, 2009

References

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Socola Monastery.

47°07′44″N 27°36′49″E / 47.1288566°N 27.6135007°E / 47.1288566; 27.6135007

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Socola_Monastery&oldid=1153519853"