The Gorni Voden Monastery "Saint Kirik and Julita" is one of the most interesting and less studied monasteries. It lies at a distance of 15 km south of the village of Gorni Voden, west of Asenovgrad. According to the regulations of the Bachkovo Monastery the whole region around the village belonged to the monastery. Not far away from the present-day monastery there was a fortress, considered to be the summer residence of Grigorii Bakuriani. The monastery probably existed in the Middle Ages as well. It was destroyed and burned down several times. Its present-day outlook was formed during its renovation in 1835. It is not very clear who the patron of the monastery is but it is known to be dedicated to saint Kirik and Julita - a martyr mother and son. There are scenes of their life and martyr's death in the murals of the main church. The church itself is dedicated to "Saint Paraskeva" which is the temple's icon.
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According to historic evidence there were two monasteries at the site from where comes the mixture of the cults. One of them was located by a healing spring which miraculous water attracted many worshipers. From it is preserved only a small chapel. At a distance of 500 m below is located the present-day big monastery complex. The main church was built to the likeness of the church in the Bachkovo monastery. It is an impressive dome building with a developed altar and a narthex with a complex vaulting. The interior of the church is a harmonious combination of murals, wood-carved iconostasis and icons from the middle of XIX c. The several preserved inscriptions tell about the time of painting of the church (1847-1850), the names of the donors and the name of the master icon-painter. The donors were from the adjacent villages, Stanimaka and Plovdiv and the artist is Aleksi Atanasov - a skilful and interesting master from the schools of the Sveta Gora monasteries. He was born near Thessalonica, Greece. The famous panorama of the Bachkovo Monastery over the external wall of the refectory and the icons of the church in Chirpan are also related to his name. Aleksi Atanasov together with his student Georgi Danchov made the famous scenes "Saint Cyril and Methodious" and "Saint Ivan Rilski" in the Arapovo Monastery. The iconostasis is one of the best examples of the wood-carving art in Bulgaria. It was made together with the whole decoration of the church's interior. The icons of the iconostasis are also of high artistic value. Six of the big icons were painted by Zahari Zograf. The big housing corps of the monastery were renovated and represent the Revival outlook of the monastery.
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Icon of Saint Saint Cyril and Methodius
