|
Ul. Angel Kanchev hits pl. Kapetan Dyado Nikola , a set-piece square which retains most of its nineteenth-century character. Dominating the scene is the clock tower , a solid stone pillar topped by a half-timbered octagonal structure that supports a dainty wooden bell tower. The Church of Archangel Michael (daily 7am-noon & 3-6pm) stands to one side, a low-lying edifice sheltering under the shallow overhang of its slate roof, from which a slender minaret-like tower emerges. Inside, the iconostasis is wonderfully rich and dark, with twelve intricate tableaux surrounding the crucifix and a carved pulpit wound around one of the columns. At the rear of the church, originally founded by the bolyari Petar and Asen to commemorate their successful twelfth-century rebellion against Byzantium, memorial photographs of the recently deceased are stuck into candelabras, part of the Orthodox forty-day mourning rite which Bulgarians also observe by putting up posters in the streets. Immediately next door is the Shkoloto or old school (daily: summer 9am-5pm; winter 8am-noon & 1-5pm; US$1), its heavy wooden doors leading to a cobbled courtyard surrounded by a timber gallery draped with ivy. On the first floor a gallery devotes itself to sentimental images of Bulgarian womanhood by contemporary Veliko Tarnovo painter and sculptor Nikola Kazakov, as well as ceramics, sculptures and paintings by her husband, Dimitar. Also on show is part of the personal collection of Buddhist art belonging to wealthy ex-pat Zlatko Paunov, including sixth-century bronze statues and silver jewellery from Tibet. In another gallery, there's an exhibition of the timepieces imported by middle-class Tryavna families of the last century. Between the school and the church, an alley leads to Raikova kashta at Prof. Raikov 1 (Tues-Sat: summer 9am-1pm & 2-6pm; winter 8am-noon & 1-5pm; US$1). Originally the home of scientist Pencho Raikov, the "father of Bulgarian chemistry", the house features exhibits on the domestic life of Tryavna's late nineteenth-century middle class, displaying the mass-produced furniture and crockery that had begun to penetrate Bulgaria from the West.
Your Tip for Around the main square
Help other backpackers! Write your own guides and backpacking tips to Around the main square - they will appear instantly on this page - Please only write a tip/guide to Around the main square - visit the main Around the main square forum to ask a question!
Please do not post links to your site here (they won't work) - please use the Around the main square webguide section below! Thanks.
|
