Barkolabovo. Holy Ascension Convent.

July 24, 1641 Belarusian tycoon Bogdan Vilhelmovich Stetkevich donated land for the construction of a nunnery in the town of Borok and donated funds for its construction.

A small stone Church of the Baptist of St. Nicholas was also erected here. In 1648, at the expense of Bohdan Stetkevich, a wooden church was built in honor of the Ascension of the Lord. Over time, cells and outbuildings appeared in the monastery, and everything was surrounded by a wooden wall.

Today the temple pleases us with its architecture and interior decoration. The wall paintings were made in the Byzantine style by the talented icon painter Anthony Belsky. On the vaults of the temple there are life-size images of Russian and Belarusian saints.

The main place of honor in the temple belongs to the famous Barkolabovskaya icon of the Mother of God. It is made on a solid coniferous wood board with a gilded carved background. According to legend, the Russian prince Pozharsky passed by the monastery, who secretly smuggled the icon of the Mother of God in his cart. When the cart approached the gates of the monastery, the horses stopped and there was no way to move them. The prince considered this a sign and decided to leave the icon here.

After the monastery was closed in 1920, the icon was kept by believers; since 1953 it was kept in the Holy Trinity Church of Bykhov. In 2010, the icon was solemnly transferred to Holy Ascension Convent in Barkolabovo.

To this day, the icon, which became especially famous for its miracles during the Northern War and the War of 1812, works miracles and people from all over Belarus come to see it.

Today, the Holy Ascension Convent is a quiet and magical place that pilgrims and believers love to visit, as well as all caring people who want to touch the shrine and the inexhaustible grace of this area with beautiful nature. Every year, on the occasion of the holiday in honor of the icon of the Mother of God of Barkolabovo, which is celebrated on July 24, a religious procession takes place from Mogilev to Barkolabovo. The event ends with a festive liturgy.

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