Mănăstirea Snagov

"Snagov Monastery is built on an islet in Snagov Lake, some 25 miles (40 km) north of Bucharest, and the structure dates back to medieval times. The first written record of Snagov is documented in 1408 in the Court Charter issued during the reign of Mircea cel Batran. During this reign, the first buildings were erected and porches from this era can be seen in the museum. The present church was built in the early sixteenth century when Neagoe Basarab was Prince of Wallachia, with further development undertaken when Constantin Brancoveanu came to the throne in 1688. Built of stone and brick, Snagov Monastery was surrounded by defense walls and a lookout tower, which doubled as a bell tower. The monastery was rebuilt in 1521 and the tower remains intact, together with a church and the ruins of some of the cells. Tools and pottery from the Bronze and Iron Ages have been found at the site, as have Roman and Byzantine coins indicating that this small island had been inhabited long before the monastery was built. The church was painted in 1563 by Dobromir the Young, and the paintings are considered to be among the greatest examples of mural painting in Romania. Snagov Monastery is closely associated with Prince Vlad the Impaler, son of Vlad Dracul and the inspiration for Bram Stoker's novel Dracula. Vlad the Impaler was mysteriously killed in a battle in 1476, and legend says that his head was sent to the sultan as a gift and that his decapitated body was subsequently buried near the altar inside the monastery church. More recently, the magnificent Snagov Palace was used as one of the residences enjoyed by Nikolae and Elena Causescu during their rule of Romania. Notorious for their extravagant lifestyle, the Ceausescus amassed a huge collection of gifts, including many paintings."