#laschia

Shhhhh I know it's the 9th today

The village was first recorded in 1543. The wooden church named “The Birth of Jesus Christ’s Mother”, was built around the year 1857, with the help of generous parishioners, on the site of a former church belonging to a monastery placed here in ancient times.

The wood used for the structure of the church was brought from from ladara, near Somcuta Mare, and the process of transporting the wood here was very dificult. The work was done by two craftsmen from the village, named Gheorghe Horja, and Tanasie Roman.

The church was built in the traditional style, so it has a porch, a pronaos, a nave and a disconnected pentagonal apse. The roof is entirely covered with dovetailed shingles, including the bell-tower, which has a longer than usual lower section in comparison with other local churches which do not have this peculiarity.

The watchtower, hidden with vertical boards, is covered by an overlaping spire in the shape of an onion that ends with, a three-armed cross with a half-moon on top.

The porch is remarkable not only because of its beautiful decorations, the ingenious

Wooden church, detail

jointing of the pillars and the superior corona, but also because of the size of the wood used for the structure.

The facade reveals a few scenes, in the centre “The Resurrection of Jesus”, and to the sides “Saint Paul” and “Saint Peter”.

The balcony facing the nave presents scenes of Adam and Eve. On the vault of the nave there is the Trinity enclosed in a circular medallion, protected by the sun and the moon and surrounded by Angels with trumpets. On the side vaults one can see “]acob’s Ladder” and “Elijah’s Ascension”, watched by Prolphet Elisha, placed between the four Evangelists. All these were painted in a naïve Byzantine style by Paul Weisz from Baia Mare, in 1870.

Painting on the exterior wall

The structure of the lconostasis is partly weakened. Restorations have affected the beauty of the whole assembly. The lconostasis is organize on pyramidal rows, around the central axis, with scenes like: “Jesus Christ’s Face on Mary Magldalena’s Scarf”, “The Last Supper” and “Jesus as High Priest”.

The Holy Doors are exceptionally decorated with grapevines full of bunches of grapes, and has medallions of “The Annunciation and of the Evangelists. It seems that the lconostasis and some icons on wood belonged to the former older monastery , which was destroyed by the Austrian general, Bukov, around 1700.

The church also houses some old religious books.

GALLERY

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Wooden church, detail

Painting on the side vault in the nave

Painting on the side vault in the nave

Painting on the parapet of the balcony

Painting on the exterior wall

Painting on the exterior wall

Painting on the ceiling vault in the nave

Laschia wooden church, general view

Icon painted on wood

Icon painted on wood

Icon painted on wood

Icon painted on wood

Icon painted on wood

Icon painted on wood