Another jewel in our collection dedicated to World Heritage. On this occasion, the Pechersk Lavra monument, located in Kiev, obtained this qualification UNESCO in 1990 and received the distinction as well as the Cathedral of St. Sophia.
No one can doubt the magnitude of this monastic complex architecture with almost a millennium old, and in fact is the oldest monastery in the whole Ukraine. It owes its existence to the desire for an ascetic withdrawal from the Greek Antonio. The man decided to live in a cave on a hill on the outskirts of Kiev.
But the hermit soon had company, of Theodosius. Together they went on mission for the world to learn of Christianity and trying to convert the population of the area, worshiping many idols, which was considered a sign of primitivism by Prince Vladimir.
The enthusiastic monks were fascinated by the Basilica of St. Sophia in Constantinople and the Orthodox cristianimo solemn ritual and convinced the prince to impose the Greek Orthodox religion also had another incentive: their sacred books had been translated into Cyrillic, so slaves could read them without having to learn the classical languages.
The passion of the two hermits was soon rewarded with a horde of followers and the cave had to be enlarged to accommodate the new monks. They dug a network of labyrinthine tunnels and numerous churches were built under the ground to worship.
A decade later, Antonio retired to another cave at the top. We followed a group of monks who came to be locked in cells meager excavated in the walls and possessed only a narrow hole that penetrated the air.
Once a week we left food and water at the entrance. If more than three days without the monk came out to look, someone crept into the cell to recover the body.
The current route of the monasteries is quite friendly and do pilgrims from all over the world. The tourist has the opportunity to walk the 300 meters of galleries that make up the Far Caves, the oldest, and 400 in the nearby caves, more austere.