Holy Trinity Chapel on a cave

Overview

"Holy Trinity" is one of the most interesting chapels in the Strandzha Mountains. About 5 km from the village of Gramatikovo, on the road to the village of Vizitsa, in the area of ​​Malka Kotvena, are the ruins of the old chapel. It was built in 1870 at the entrance of a natural cave, dug into the ground on the site of an ancient Thracian sanctuary. It is assumed that at this place, even before the Ottoman invasion, there was a monastery, part of the Parish Monastery Complex, consisting of many chapels and monasteries in the district of Paroria (located between the villages of Kalovo and Zabernovo). The creator of this complex is Gregory of Sinai - the founder of the Orthodox doctrine of hesychasm. The isolated and remote Strandzha region was very suitable for the ideology of hesychasm, which in the traditions of asceticism required silence and solitude. The entrance to the cave is made of stone steps. In addition to tourists, the site attracts historians, archaeologists and pilgrims.

The chapel itself can be reached by a path that starts at a turnoff, between the villages of Gramatikovo and Vizitsa, marked with a blue sign. It is about 2.3 kilometers long with a displacement of 75 meters and takes about 40 minutes. The path is in good condition and the area around the chapel is located in dense and lush vegetation.

The uniqueness of the chapel is its current appearance and architecture, built of cut limestone on a natural cave in a magma rock, which was an ancient Thracian sanctuary. Inside the chapel there is a stone staircase that can be descended into the cave. Crystal and pure water flows on its walls and ceiling, which is believed to be a spring and has healing properties. The belief is that every descent into the cave leads to the purification of sins. In one of the branches, which can be reached by carved stone steps, there are remains of household ceramics. At the bottom of the cave there is an old icon around which believers light candles.

The legend of the Holy Trinity Chapel

According to legend, several centuries ago, when there was a monastery here, a large Turkish horde set in. The frightened monks decided to hide in the cave, but entered the left passage, from which no one ever returned. The right one was shorter and the believers went to pray there. After hiding, the cave collapsed and the passage was buried. That night, a man from the village of Gramatikovo dreamed that the monks were in danger and the next day he gathered his fellow villagers with shovels and hoes to dig, but in the right passage. They found nothing and went home. In the evening the man dreamed again of the monks calling for help. This time a voice whispered to him that they were in the left aisle. The next day they went to dig again, and so they saved them.

Near the chapel and the cave, you can see two very old oaks - a Quercus hartwissiana at 550 years old and a Quercus frainetto at 400 years old. The liars are found only in the Strandzha Mountains and nowhere else in Bulgaria. In the past, Quercus hartwissiana acorns have been used for food because they do not turn sour.