St. Kirill Monastery

This monastery was founded in 1139 by the Chernihiv prince, Vsevolod Olgovich. The first building on the complex was the St. Kirill Church.

The Mongols and Tatars badly damaged the church in the 13th century. Restoration work was done during both the 17th and 18th centuries.

In 1786 Empress Catherine II ordered the monastery closed and a psychiatric hospital set up there. In 1860 some priceless 12th century frescoes were discovered under a layer of plaster.

The plaster was taken off to reveal the frescoes. The famous Russian painter Mikhail Vrubel restored the parts of the frescoes that were damaged when the plaster was removed.