Cosauti Monastery

Culture · Northern Moldova

The first Cosauti Monastery met an untimely end: An earthquake-triggered landslide wiped it out nearly two centuries ago, in the early 1800s. The Moldovan Orthodox Church reopened it in 1994, after the break-up of the Soviet Union. Although the landslide destroyed the monastery’s church, a small chapel with a lovely dome survived. Hidden in the forest surrounding the monastery is the Chalk Monastery, the quarters of a solitary monk known as Pintilie that were carved out of limestone. Near the Cosauti Monastery is the Soroca Fortress, one of Moldova’s best-preserved medieval stone fortifications.