Rock-Hewn Churches of Ivanovo

During the 12th century, when the first hermits dug out their cells and chapels. The scenery from the 14th centennial attests to the extraordinary competence of the artists below. The rock-hewn Churches of Ivanovo display great workmanship and a remarkable creative awareness for 14th-century portraits and Bulgarian medieval artistry; they are a significant achievement in portside-Eastern European Christian artistry. Before the Khora lamasery mosaics (Karia Djami) of 1303-10, this group of monolithic churches outshined any disparate ancient monuments uncovered in the Palaeologues style due to their expressiveness. The structures are a breach from the canons of Byzantine iconography, the couple in spirit and elements of their essence. 

Rock-hewn Churches of Ivanovo

Ivanovo’s Rock-Hewn Churches, a complex of rock-hewn churches, chapels, monasteries, and cells, appear adjacent to the settlement of Ivanovo in the Rusenski Lom estuary basin in northeast Bulgaria. The scenery from the 14th centennial attests to the exceptional competence of the Tarnovo School of painters. The Ivanovo churches display great artistry and an exceptional creative awareness for 14th-century portraits and Bulgarian medieval artistry; they are a significant achievement in portside-Eastern European Christian artistry. 

Before the Khora lamasery mosaics (Karia Djami) of 1303-10, this group of monolithic churches outshined ancient masterpieces uncovered in the Palaeologues style due to their expressiveness. The structures are a breach from the canons of Byzantine iconography, the couple in spirit and elements of their essence. They exhibit a clear affinity for the nude, the landscape, an architectural background in composition, drama, and an emotional atmosphere – traits combine to create an unparalleled masterpiece of the Tarnovo school of painting. 

The five ancient masterpieces in this category (chapels, churches, and so on) are from the 13th and 14th century and serve as models for the Second Bulgarian State’s particular character augmentation and mastery of the arts. The richness, variety, and innovative architectural solutions of the cells, chapels, cathedrals, and monastic structure, all based in a stunning natural setting, demonstrate the worth of this outstanding ancient alignment.

Group of Monolithic Churches

A monolithic church, often known as a rock-hewn church, is one built entirely of a single block of stone. The 11 medieval monolithic cave churches of this 13th-century ‘contemporary Jerusalem’ are based adjacent to a traditional town with circular-shaped homes in a mountainous location in the centre of Ethiopia. Lalibela is the holiest site in Ethiopian Christianity and is still a place of pilgrimage and devotion today.

Due to the scarcity of large freestanding boulders, monolithic structures are usually hewn into the ground or the side of a hill or mountain. They can have architectural complexity equivalent to that of built structures. Seven of the 11 churches are free-standing, while the disparate four share a wall with the mountain from which they were carved. The human figures of bas-reliefs inside Bet Golgotha and the vivid paintings of geometrical designs and biblical essence in Bet Mariam give the site architectural complexity. 

Rocky Banks of the Rusenski Lom

Four estuaries originate in the Ludogorie, forming Rusenski Lom. Baniski Lom, Cherni (Black) Lom, Malki (Small) Lom (алки oм), and Beli (White) Lom (ели ом) are the four disparate types of Lom. They come together at several spots and create a single estuary, Rusenski Lom, adjacent to Ivanovo. These estuaries flow through karst (limestone) areas, which is why they carve spectacular canyons into the plain. They do so by taking a lot of detours. The canyons’ walls are vertically adjacent in numerous areas.

Ancient humans were drawn to the canyons’ rugged walls, and they constructed numerous rock-hewn churches and monasteries. However, questions like who they were, when, and how they did it remain a mystery.

The territory of Ludogorie has been inhabited for thousands of years, first by unknown people who left artefacts (now in archaeological museums), then by the Thracians (remains of whom can be seen today, such as the so-called “sharaptash”- ponds of unknown purpose). 

Conclusion 

The Rock-hewn Churches of Ivanovo are a group of monolithic churches, chapels, and monasteries hewn out of solid rock and thoroughly disparate from disparate lamasery structures in Bulgaria, based adjacent to the suburb of Ivanovo 20 km portside of Rousse, on the high rocky banks of the Rusenski. The 13th-century ceiling scenery from the buried church of St. Archangels was saved and transported to a contemporary substrate as a result of a rock fall in the early twentieth century. The initial step of work restoring the scenery of the busted St. Todor Church, which dates from the 14th centennial, has already been finished.