Galați

Oldest building in Galați, being consecrated as a place of worship in 1647. The church was dedicated to the Vatoped Monastery on Mount Athos. The architecture of the church is Romanian and has some specific elements: the bell tower is provided with ramparts, and can be used to observe the Danube Valley, and if necessary became a defensive fortification. The tower, consisting of two levels, is provided with a room for hiding valuables, with two ramparts and an access door, probably to a balcony. The second level was provided with windows and ramparts. Another defence element is the fortified bridge, consisting of two parts, one above the nave and the other above the altar. The bridge has 28 ramparts. In masonry, among the rows of bricks, stone is used, a technique not used in other Moldovan churches built in the same period. The church was burned in 1711 by the Ottomans, destroyed in the Russo-Ottoman-Austrian wars of 1735-1739 and 1769-1774. In 1821, the Ottomans destroyed and looted the place again. and restored in 1829 and 1859. A restoration was carried out between 1953 and 1957, after which the church was transformed into a museum, and between 1991 and 1994, the Precista church was restored and restored to Orthodox worship.

Built in 1844 and extended in 1873. Among the objects of artistic value we mention: the Great Altar, made of colored marble, the painting "Saint John the Baptist preaching", the Statue of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus Christ, the Statues of Pieta and Saint Francis of Assisi. The church was consolidated and renovated in its current state between 1985-1988.