A Traditional Story from Romania

Manole and Black Count The Church of the Curtea de Arges monastery is situated in a wonderful setting, on the rich valley of the river Arges, at the bottom of the southern side of the Carpathian mountains and at the crossroads of the old commercial Romanian roads. The legend says that the church was built by a famous craftsman called Manole and another 9 craftsmen who joined him to carry out this very important work when the Black Count ordered him to.

After a minute searching in the area, Manole found a proper place for the church to be erected. Manole knew that the count had longed and dreamt for it for a very long time, so he had to complete its building quite quickly and make it look a state of art. So, Manole and his team started to raise the walls of the church with much commitment. and industry. A few days later he realised that the harder he worked the faster the walls would collapse. The only thing he could see in the morning were the ruins of the walls he had raised the day before. At first he got annoyed and crossed but later on as his work proved to be useless he got frightened of the thought that he couldn’t finish the work in good terms. Torments would keep him awake all night.

But one night he had a dream: which he told his fellow workers the next morning: it said that they would not be able to build the church until they sacrificed the first wife or sister to bring them meal that day. The first thing Manole did in the morning was to climb the scaffolding to see the woman he had to sacrifice in order to make the building last. He loved his wife Ana so much and he hoped it wasn’t her the woman to be sacrificed. But the fate was cruel to him.

When he saw her on the way he prayed to God to bring down showers, gales, thunder and lightning but nothing could make her go back or even stop her for a while from getting to the place her husband worked. His soul was distressed. As he had to choose between the love for his wife and to his creation. After a long inner struggle, Manole made up his mind and began to place his wife in the walls of the most sacred place in the church altar, while she was crying and screaming. Manole’s soul was devastated but he couldn’t stop working. The walls wouldn’t fall down at night this time. He could finish the church in due time.

Count Black came to see the church The craftsmen were on its roof and were proud of their work. The mean and wicked count asked them if they could build another church at least as beautiful as that one. They confirmed that they could build a more beautiful, more spacious and majestic one. On hearing this the king ordered to have the scaffolding pulled down, so that the craftsmen could be doomed to death. There on the roof Manole could still hear Ana screaming and yielding. He got completely distressed.

On trying to save his life, Manole built up a pair of wings made of shingle and he plunged off the roof. but the wings broke and he died. In the place where he fell a fountain came up, and the legend says its water came from Manole`s tears and sobs. The church of the Arges monastery is a proof of this legend being very much appreciated for its beauty.by both the Romanians and the foreign tourists.