Romania

Located in Viisoara village , 9km far from Piatra Neamt, somewhere near the confluence of Viisoara River with Bistrita River , at the feet of Cetatuia Hill.
It was built during the rule of Prince Alexander the Good.
Along the time the monastery was consolidated and some new buildings were added during the rule of Stephen the Great (when the steeple and the chapel were built; he also gave a bell on which Moldavia’s coat of arm appeared).
In 1554, the monastery was consolidated totally by Petru Rares who brought numerous talented painters from Venice.
The monastery also houses a valuable museum which conserves precious religious objects, icons and other original art objects. (This is where the first Manuscript of Moldavia was written).
One of the attractions of the monastery is the making miracles icon of Saint Ann (who is also the protector of the monastery) offered in 1401 by the Emperor Manuel Paleologul to the ruler Alexander the Good. Here, at Bistrita Monastery, the princely family decided to bury some of his members: Prince Alexander the Good with his wife, two children of Stephen the Great (Alexander and Ana ) .

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2007-03-30 21:06:34 created by petre