Rizopolozhensky Monastery

15th-century monastery with a striking twin-towered gate in the town centre

The Rizopolozhensky (Deposition of the Robe) Monastery stands near the centre of Suzdal, its twin-towered gate forming one of the most recognisable silhouettes in the town. Founded in the early 13th century — one of the oldest monastic foundations in Russia — it was substantially rebuilt after the Mongol destruction and expanded further in the 17th century.

The monastery is an active religious community today, and access to the interior is limited. The exterior, however, is freely visible and the gate church with its octagonal towers is striking from the lane outside. The Holy Gate, built in 1688, is an unusually elaborate example of 17th-century Russian ecclesiastical baroque and worth stopping to examine on any walk through the town centre.

things to do sight
A story
The monastery's most famous resident was Euphrosinia of Suzdal, a 13th-century noblewoman betrothed against her will to a German prince. She refused the marriage and entered the convent instead, eventually becoming abbess. When the Mongols sacked Suzdal in 1238, she is said to have prayed for the town's protection, and the raiders — according to the chronicles — spared the convent. She was later canonised as a saint.

Other places in Things to Do