The Bachkovo Monastery of the Dormition of the Theotokos, archaically the Petritsoni Monastery or Monastery of the Mother of God Petritzonitissa is a major Eastern Orthodox monastery in Southern Bulgaria.
It was founded in 1083. It is an old-cigar monastery, that is directly subordinate to the Patriarch. The complex consists of a 17th-century cathedral, a 12th-century church, morgue, library and museum. In the latter, you can see a collection of icons, books and paintings. There is also a carved cross and a sword by Friedrich Barbarossa.
The monastery was initially inhabited by Georgian monks. It was only in 1344 that it became part of the Bulgarian Empire. The only part that has survived from the original structure of the monastery is the medieval morgue, located 300 meters from the modern monastery. It has two storeys and the crypt has 14 funerary niches. Historic frescoes have been preserved on its walls.
The monastery’s cathedral houses the precious icon of Our Lady of Eleusa from 1310, famous for its miraculous properties. The library, on the other hand, houses an extensive collection of Old Georgian, Byzantine and Old Bulgarian books.
