CHURCH "ST. ASSUMPTION OF THE LORD ”BOTEVGRAD
Church "St. The Assumption of the Lord "is located in the Botevgrad Spiritual District and the Archdiocese of Botevgrad. It belongs to the Lovchan Diocese of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church. Church holiday of the Botevgrad church "St. Ascension ", built in the period from 1860 to 1863 and consecrated 156 years ago, in 1864, according to the testimony of the local ethnographer Atanas Ninov. In its place there is evidence of the presence of an ancient chapel, on the foundations of which the church "St. Georgi ”.
In 1826, there was a monastery school next to it. The stone from the chapel is still perfectly preserved and is part of the exceptional architectural environment in the church today. On the foundations of the old church "St. Georgija ", the church of" St. Ascension "with the help of the local population. Among them is Nako Valkov, whose name is engraved on the threshold, on a stone, which is today in the hall of the "Church and School" in the History Museum in Botevgrad. The year 1860 is also mentioned, which gives the basis for Tashko Ninov to mark the year 1860 in his history of Orhani as the starting point for the newly built church. Other authors note the year 1860 as the beginning only for the construction of the temple, which was completed in 1863, which is even more logical, considering that it was consecrated in 1864, since when it has been functioning. The first painter is the master of Debar Blaže (Blagoj Damjanov) from the village of Tresonče. His extreme modesty is exceptional, he did not write his name anywhere. Today, only the icons and iconostasis that he painted, which are part of the museum collection, speak of his talent.
The painter marked only the year in which the painting of the temple was completed - 1866. Architecturally, the temple is a single-nave building of the basilica type with a bell tower in the narthex and an entrance from the west. The bell tower was completed in 1894. Today, another entrance was opened from the north for easier access of the laity. To the south is an extension of the building, which has been completed in recent times. In the churchyard are the graves of Russian soldiers wounded in Arabakonka, as well as zealous worshipers. The iconostasis was completed in 1932. It has burned twice since the erection of the "Holy Ascension of the Lord", but most of the icons have survived. Some of the oldest icons are from the middle of the 19th century, "St. John ", St. "Bartholomew", "The Last Supper", "The Crucifixion of Christ", and later, "12 Apostles", "The Mother of God" date from 1931, from the time of the iconostasis.
This is confirmed by Dimitar Palčev, who was the author and restorer of the last painting of the church in the 90s of the twentieth century. Under the soot, he testified that he came across two older layers. In 1970, the church was declared a cultural monument of historical value and local significance. Why were the name and holiday of the temple changed from "St. Georgija ”in“ St. The Ascension of the Lord "today we can only speculate. In all 156 years of its existence until today, the church "Holy Ascension" has been preserved as a natural cultural and spiritual center of Botevgrad and has helped preserve the Bulgarian language, worship, Old Slavonic and ancient literature, church choir, a number of rituals and customs.
In 1826, there was a monastery school next to it. The stone from the chapel is still perfectly preserved and is part of the exceptional architectural environment in the church today. On the foundations of the old church "St. Georgija ", the church of" St. Ascension "with the help of the local population. Among them is Nako Valkov, whose name is engraved on the threshold, on a stone, which is today in the hall of the "Church and School" in the History Museum in Botevgrad. The year 1860 is also mentioned, which gives the basis for Tashko Ninov to mark the year 1860 in his history of Orhani as the starting point for the newly built church. Other authors note the year 1860 as the beginning only for the construction of the temple, which was completed in 1863, which is even more logical, considering that it was consecrated in 1864, since when it has been functioning. The first painter is the master of Debar Blaže (Blagoj Damjanov) from the village of Tresonče. His extreme modesty is exceptional, he did not write his name anywhere. Today, only the icons and iconostasis that he painted, which are part of the museum collection, speak of his talent.
The painter marked only the year in which the painting of the temple was completed - 1866. Architecturally, the temple is a single-nave building of the basilica type with a bell tower in the narthex and an entrance from the west. The bell tower was completed in 1894. Today, another entrance was opened from the north for easier access of the laity. To the south is an extension of the building, which has been completed in recent times. In the churchyard are the graves of Russian soldiers wounded in Arabakonka, as well as zealous worshipers. The iconostasis was completed in 1932. It has burned twice since the erection of the "Holy Ascension of the Lord", but most of the icons have survived. Some of the oldest icons are from the middle of the 19th century, "St. John ", St. "Bartholomew", "The Last Supper", "The Crucifixion of Christ", and later, "12 Apostles", "The Mother of God" date from 1931, from the time of the iconostasis.
This is confirmed by Dimitar Palčev, who was the author and restorer of the last painting of the church in the 90s of the twentieth century. Under the soot, he testified that he came across two older layers. In 1970, the church was declared a cultural monument of historical value and local significance. Why were the name and holiday of the temple changed from "St. Georgija ”in“ St. The Ascension of the Lord "today we can only speculate. In all 156 years of its existence until today, the church "Holy Ascension" has been preserved as a natural cultural and spiritual center of Botevgrad and has helped preserve the Bulgarian language, worship, Old Slavonic and ancient literature, church choir, a number of rituals and customs.