The history of the Monastery dates back to the 15th-16th centuries, when on the place of the current edifice there was a small wooden Church. The activity of the Monastery was closely connected with the Cave Hermitage (“Peștera”). There is no evidence of further activity of the hermitages in this area during the 18th and 19th centuries. Towards the end of the 19th century, the monastic life in the area was gradually resumed. In 1905, the Monastery of the Nativity of the mother of God was consecrated and reopened. Once the Soviet regime was established, the Monastery of the Nativity of the Mother of God, including the adjacent Cave Hermitage, were turned into an open-air museum. In 1947, following the inventory of the monastery-owned books and icons, some of these items were handed over to the monasteries in Ukraine. In 1968, the Church bells were removed as well, being replaced with empty gas cylinders. The actual Church bells were recently brought from Russia. The current monastic community was officially registered in 1996, while the divine services became officiated since 1998.

Part of the cave complex Butuceni, the Cave Monastery, comprises a church, 11 monastic cells, bell tower and a massive stone cross. The holy place was built by refurbishing some older premises, the traces of which were visible on the walls. The 11 monastic cells were dug on the steep bank of the River Raut in the 15th century, marking a number of periods of functioning.

The Hermitage comprises a bell tower and a massive stone cross, dating back to the  18th century. You will often see couples of newlyweds walking towards this cross, eager to immortalize this special day in this place full of legends.

Historical monument composed of a cave church and 9 monastic cells, located at 25 m high, dates back to the 17th century AD. It is distinguished by the medieval stoning inscriptions, written in Cyrillic script in Slavonic and Romanian languages, unique of its kind, preserved in the Republic of Moldova. The construction is attributed to Pârcălabul de Orhei Bosie, who left a foundation inscription at the entrance to the Church back in 1665.

The 9 monastic cells adjacent to the church would catch your attention by their interior layout: stone beds, hearths, window openings along with the traces of various wooden structures: partitions, beams, etc.

In the memory of the indigenous population, this place is known as “Feredeu”, which means Spa Resort or City bath. The location of one of the 3 Tatar Baths was on the bank of the Raut River. Nowadays, this place can be seen through the remaining masonry, the ancient foundation of a former sturdy edifice. During 1948 through 1950, the archaeologists discovered within the territory of old Orhei, on the banks of the Raut River, the traces of another three sites, which turned out to be the Baths of the Golden Horde Era. The edifices were equipped with a heating system, hot vapor exhaust pipes and a fairly well branched out water supply networks. Inside one could still see some remnants of what once were the bathrooms, change rooms, fire stove rooms and the adjacent accommodations. The walls of the building were made of roughly processed though resistant natural stone, due to which face the foundation of the edifice was preserved until nowadays.  The Bath, with its foundation preserved to this day, is one of the three Feredeie (iron bath) made in the first part of the 14th century in different parts of the city.

Typical household arrangement for Butuceni village – dates back to the XIX-XX centuries. The household comprises the main residence, the so-called bașca, cellar,  loznița, râsnița and other adjacent elements, all of which are fenced with a stone wall separating the Moldovan peasant from the rest of the world. No more, no less than it would have taken a household – each construction had its purpose: the cellar was for storing supplies, bașca served as the summerhouse, loznița was a special oven for fruit drying, and râsnița was handy in grinding the cereals – without technology and digital displays – just pure manual work. Did I manage to intrigue you? Then come and see how an authentic farm in Butuceni works!

As a strategically perfect area, the basin of River Răut, was home to one of the most famous peoples of antiquity – the Geto– Dacians. Located on the promontory of Butuceni, the Geto-Dacians Fortress is the oldest fortified site in Orheiul Vechi, dating back to the 7th-5th century BC. Initially, there was just the citadel. Later on it was extended and turned into a real fortress. The location has seen numerous changes over its four centuries of existence: extending the enclosure, arranging new fortifications, refurbishment of the old ones, changing the entire structure. All these were protected by 10 defense lines formed by the ramparts, ditches, stonewall and pole fencing.

The complex preserves about 20 monastic cave rooms located on five levels, some of which are interconnected. The cells that have been preserved are extremely small in size, destined for an austere existence, which is also confirmed by their location at 70-80 meters high above the water surface. Currently, the hermitage is gradually decaying under the negative effect of natural calamities. Tourists’ access to the area is LIMITED.

The museum complex “Orheiul Vechi” has its exhibition center with valuable archaeological finds, discovered on the territory of the protected reservation during excavations works. The exhibition center is structured according to the historical epochs and reflects all of the biotopic stages of civilizations that have ever inhabited the Orheiul Vechi micro zone.  Stored in the archives of the museum complex are the impressive collections of heritage objects, total of about 6 thousand pieces of inventory (tools, weapons, glass, coins, etc.) and over 100 thousand ceramic sherds.
Besides, the collection contains ethnographic exhibits, such as: fabrics, traditional peasant clothes, metal ornaments, etc. As part of various topical exhibitions inside of the complex found could be some elements of medieval and modern architecture.