Ancient Cave Monastery Kostomarovo | Russia
The Svyato-Spassky Convent in Kostomarovo is an ancient cave monastery located about 150 kilometers south of the town of Voronezh, just 3-hours drive away. There are two churches in these caves: a big Spassky temple with columns and a small St. Seraphim Sarovsky church. The Spassky temple burrows deep into the chalky cliff to form a spacious interior that can house up to 2,000 people. According to legend, the first cave temples were built on the banks of the Don river, before the adoption of Christianity in Russia. Hermits and monks would use these ascetic cave cells to hide from persecution and it wasn’t until the 12th century that the first monastery was built. The monastery was built with the intention of providing parishioners a place to take refuge in case of enemy attacks and even sustain a long-term siege. Within the walls of the shrine were cut small cells for monks and hermits to live. Their only contact with the outside world was through a little window cut into t...