Noutati

John the Baptist Church
Coordonate GPS: 44.111272,24.341838

John the Baptist Church is situated at the junction of Gheorghe Doja street in Bold neighborhood and Craiovei street. As we are told by the inscription written in Cyrillic letters above the entrance door, it was „built with the expense and effort of Master Şerban Cojocario, of Craiova, and of Master Barbu and Lady Maria, daughter of Ion Cojocario“ in 1768  (year 7276) „…celebrating the Saint Patron John the Baptist with the blessing of his holiness, Bishop of Rămănic, during the time of our beloved and enlightened Lord Alexander …“.  Burnt in 1802, it is repaired by the merchant Ion Băluţă. From other two inscriptions placed inside the church, we find out that it required other two repairs in the second half of XIX century, the most significant one being executed in 1862. On this occasion, it suffered modifications in terms of shape and dimensions, by demolishing two small steeples and by replacing them with one single belfry above the entrance; the central vault was covered by rounding. From the second repair of 1895, the inscription attesting that „This holy and godly church founded in 1768 by Ştefan Cojocariu of Craiova and his wife and Ion Starostea of Craiova, repaired in 1862 by Vasile Suditu and Sofia Cazan and others. In 1895, August 25, it was repaired once again with money that the church had been rising with the effort of Bishop Vasile Suditu, Teodor Cazan, priest Marin Stănescu and cantor Radu Drosu.“

There is a mystery surrounding this last inscription, which relates the church history, but which says nothing of the repair made by the merchant Ion Băluţă after 1802. The subsequent repairs of 1926, 1931 and 1939 have helped place in their right position of value certain stone sculptures framing the church entrance and its windows. The painting of 1862 covers the original fresco, but it has great artistic value, with very expressive images, framed in ingenious and very beautifully colored frames.

The church was „adorned once again“ in 1974, and between 1998-1999 „the interior painting was restored [..], the exterior was painted as well, the same as the roof, and the church was adorned“. The vicar of this church is Dinu Ion; the church is on the historical monument list with identification code OT-II-m-B-08799.