A masterpiece of the BrΓncoveanu and the post-Byzantine styles, the Horezu Monastery was, upon its foundation in 1694, the most artistically accomplished religious monument in Wallachia. The monastic complex at Horezu includes five churches, a princely palace, a belfry, a ôbelvedereö, monk cells, carpet-weaving workshops, and mural painting workshops.
The main church is dedicated to the Holy Emperor Saint Constantine and Holy Empress Saint Helena. It was built by Prince Constantin BrΓncoveanu between 1690 and 1694. On the front side, it has a large porch with ten pillars. The church was conceived as a necropolis for the BrΓncoveanu family, whose members are also represented in the votive painting. The crypt remained empty after the prince and his four sons were executed at the SultanÆs court on August 15, 1714.
The second church is dedicated to Saint Michael and was erected in 1700. It is rectangular and has tall and slender spires. The church iconostasis, a donation of Prince Constantin BrΓncoveanu, is made up of icons framed in linden wood, covered in gold leaf, carved in filigree and surrounded by mural frescoes.
Fortified some years later, the monastery was also a residence of Prince BrΓncoveanu and his family. The princely palace, built in the southern part of the monastic complex, still has its richly decorated stone columns. The princely edifices and the churches possessed finely carved furniture.
The inside frescoes in these two churches were painted between 1692 and 1702 by twelve masters led by Masters Constantin and Ioan, who promoted painting in the Byzantine Renaissance and the BrΓncoveanu styles. The themes of the frescoes are inspired by the Byzantine religious works that circulated at the time in various languages, including Romanian, e.g. Varlaam and Ioasaf and The Life of Saint Constantine. During the 18th century, a religious school for copyists and an icon painting school made the monastery famous in the whole Balkan region
