The Teteven Monastery "Saint Iliya" was situated northeast of Teteven in the skirts of the Ostretz peak. Now it is within the limits of the present-day town and only the church and one housing building from it are preserved. There is some indirect evidence for the activity of the monastery in the books which were rewritten here and in other documents. Old-print books from XVIII c. and icons from XVII-XVIII c. are also preserved in the monastery. 1779 was a disaster for Teteven. The Turkish troops burned and plundered the settlement but the monastery survived the outrages. This is understood from an inscription on the church. This and other inscriptions date the initial building to XVIII c. The Teteven monastery played an important cultural-educational role. It housed active figures from the national liberation movement. There are two styles of painting remains: early decoration from XVII c. at the altar section and remains from unfinished murals from XIX c. in the interior. It is supposed that they were made by Ivan Dospevski. The iconostasis of the church was most likely made by the same masters who made the iconostasis of the chapel "Saint Nikola" in the Troyan Monastery. The royal gates of the church are identical to the ones of the chapel.
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Icon of Saint Iliya
