The Legend

Curtea de Arges Monastery is a romanian orthodox monastery founded in the time of voivode Neagoe Basarab, between 1512 - 1517 and it's part of the famoust "Legend of master Manole". Inside the church, the attention is captured by the mural paintings in oil and especially by the group of the 12 columns representing the 12 Apostles. The mortal remains of romanian kings Ferdinand and Carol I and queens Elisabeth nad Maria rest here as well.

The legend:
“The legend of master Manole”, which is directly connected to the name of Curtea de Arges Monastery, says that the ruler hired the greatest masters to build the place of worship. But all that they had built during the day fell apart during the night. So one night Manole had a dream, showing him that the construction would resist only if he built his wife in one of the walls. The next day, when his wife Ana came to bring him the food, Manole built her in the South wall. When all was ready, Neagoe Basarab was impressed by the beauty of the Monastery, and ordered his servants to take the stairs that leaded to the roof so that the masters could not come down and built a more beautiful church. Then Manole manufactured some sieve wings so he could fly, but he crushed. It is said that a spring, representing Manole’s tears, appeared on the spot where he touched the land. The spring actually exists, and it is near the monastery.