Monastery of Prince Boris the Baptist

Located four kilometers outside of Varna’s downtown in the villa neighborhood high above the Vazrazhdane neighborhood is a landmark so intriguing that not even the city’s natives know about it.  Kaarach Teke is home to the Boris Monastery.

This  moniker was not chosen at random. It was likely there that Prince Boris the Baptist took the monastic vows. Herman and Karel Shkorpil, Czech archaeologists, established this theory a century ago.

One of the biggest monasteries in all of the Balkans. For the historical period of the First Bulgarian Kingdom, its size was unprecedentedly impressive. About 10 acres are included in its area. The monastery is impressive not just because of its grandeur, but also because of its unconventional layout, which deviates from both Bulgarian and Byzantine norms.

The complex has been extensively explored throughout the years; the Shkorpil brothers are credited with making the first discovery. The lead seal supporting their theory that Prince Boris established the monastery was also discovered. Herman and Karel Shkorpil came to the conclusion that the seal depicts the visage of Prince Boris on one side and the Virgin Mary on the other. The brothers claim in their paper that the Bulgarian tsar was familiar with the region’s monasteries. The city’s early Christians made it one of the most Christian regions in all of Northern Bulgaria.

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