Map

The Chapel of St. Petka is a Christianized prehistoric cave sanctuary, transformed into a rock-hewn chapel. The holy place is situated above the Barintsi district in Tran. From the ceiling of the cave flows water, which is considered to come from a sacred source and possess curative properties. Inside the cave there is the so-called “stone bread" with a hole in the middle, where believers light candles. It is a monolithic stone rock disk, decorated with solar geometric motifs. Analogues can be made with the decoration of the Easter and St. George’s day breads traditionaly prepared by the Bulgarian Christians. Holes in the floor of the cave are likened to the footprints of the saint. In 2018, the rock-hewn Sveta Petka Chapel has been declared a monument of culture of regional importance.

The earliest traces of human settlements found in the caves on the territory of the Municipality of Tran date back to the Neolithic age. It is probable that the site was first a pagan shrine, long before it was Christianized. It was associated with St. Paraskeva, commonly known as St. Petka, in the 14th century. The shrine attracted worshipers until the nineteen century, when it was abandoned. It was restored as a Christian temple in 1990.

According to a medieval legend, St. Petka hid in the cave from the persecution by unbelievers. She lit a fire and baked a bread, but at that time the pursuers entered the cave. Fortunately, St. Petka followed the smoke of the fire to another exit of the cave and escaped. When the pursuers reached for the bread, it turned to stone. The narrative is similar to numerous ancient mythological stories, like those recounted by Ovid’s in his Metamorphoses. Thus, the character of the saint can be connected to earlier feminine deities, most obviously - to the goddess Hestia.

The cult of Saint Parascheva spread in the 14th century from Bulgaria northwards into the Romanian principalities Wallachia and Moldavia. In this period, Bishop Evtimiy of Tarnovo (1332-1402) wrote the biography of Saint Parascheva - "Hagiography of Saint Petka of Tarnovo”. On St. Peter’s day - the temple feast of the chapel – sick and suffering people from all over the region come to pray here. This tradition has an analogue with the spiritual rites at caves dedicated to St. Marina in the Strandza Mountain.

- Direct visit
- Virtual visit: Watch excerpts from the video and the photo galleries in the media resources section.
Classroom activity: Discuss how is it possible that for an ancient tradition to exist today. How has it changed? How does religion shape our judgments and behaviors? For detailed instructions, refer to 'Between innovation and tradition' (https://bit.ly/2wxuJOl)