Vysokovsky Assumption Monastery, Orthodox monastery in Koverninsky District, Russia
Vysokovsky Assumption Monastery stands on the high right bank of the Bolshoy Utrus River, 2 km from the village of Vysokovo. Its stone buildings were erected almost simultaneously in the early 19th century, forming a single classicist ensemble. The grounds hold three churches: the Assumption, St Nicholas and St George.
Founded in 1784 as an Old Believer hermitage by the monk Gerasim, a former Don Cossack, the community of 22 inhabitants petitioned in 1801 to join the Edinoverie. In 1804 the Synod allowed its chapel to be rebuilt as a church, consecrated in 1807. In 1820 Alexander I renamed it the Vysokovsky Assumption Hermitage, and in 1929 it was closed, reopening in 1996.
The monastery began as a Old Believer skete; on 8 October 1801 twenty-two inhabitants signed a petition to join the Edinoverie movement, and after the 1807 consecration over 500 local Old Believers joined the church within twelve years. The three churches on the grounds are dedicated to the Dormition, Saint Nicholas and Saint George.
The monastery stands on the high right bank of the Bolshoy Utrus River, about 2 km from the village of Vysokovo and 160 km from Nizhny Novgorod. Access is by road through Koverninsky District, so arrange transport in advance. The grounds are a working monastery: dress modestly and keep to paths outside services.
In 1929 the monastery was closed: an asphalt road was laid across its grounds, shops were built on the square, hay was stored in the Assumption Church, a woodworking plant opened in the Trinity Church, and the abbot's house held the kolkhoz office and living quarters. The abandoned buildings were placed under state protection in 1979 and given federal heritage status in 1995.
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