Attractions of Mohyliv-Podilskyi district

The State Historical and Cultural Reserve "Busha" was created in 2000 on the territory of the ancient Podillya village of Busha, located between Yampil and Mohyliv-Podilskyi. The reserve unites a whole complex of natural, archaeological, historical and cultural monuments of Eastern Podillya.

The reserve welcomes its guests with the largest open-air museum of historical sculptures in Europe, where international plein-air exhibitions of stonemason sculptors are held annually. In total, on the territory of the village, you can see about two hundred works of stone and granite on various subjects.

The key object of the reserve is Zamkova hill with the remains of the Busha Castle from Cossack times and underground passages of the 16th-17th centuries, which is a monument of cultural heritage of national importance. Remains of the settlement of the Trypllia culture were also found on the castle - a protective pavilion was built over the excavation, and the archaeological museum operates. On the slope of the mountain above the fortress there is a medieval cemetery where Cossack crosses from the 18th century have been preserved. An archaeological monument of national importance is also a cave temple of the V-XVII centuries with relief images.

The reserve includes the Ethnographic Museum, the Art Museum and the Weaving Museum. An interesting natural location is the "Haidamatsky ravine" with huge sandstone rocks in the forest massif.

The administration of the "Busha" reserve is located opposite the castle. Here you can buy tickets to the museum and order tours of the territory of the reserve. Also, in the premises of the administration, exhibitions are constantly held, master classes on baking ceremonial bread are held.

The border Busha Castle on the south-eastern border of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth was built in the second half of the 16th century by crown hetman Jan Zamoyski. But it went down in history as a heroic Cossack fortress.

The castle was located on a promontory formed by the rivers Murafa and Bushanka. 4 corner castle towers were connected by underground passages. Each of the towers had its own powder cellar. Two more stone towers were part of the system of external wooden fortifications.

The castle was often attacked by Tatars. In 1617, Hetman Stanislav Zholkevskyi signed a peace treaty with the Turkish general Iskander Pasha, suspending the Polish-Turkish war for several years. In 1648 Bohdan Khmelnytsky subordinated the city to the Bratslav Regiment, the fortress was occupied by Cossack troops.

In 1654 the castle was besieged by Polish troops. According to legend, the last stage of the defense was led by the widow of Captain Dependent Maryana. When enemies stormed the city, she set fire to gunpowder cellars, destroying the fortress with an explosion along with enemies who captured it.

Only one of the fortress towers has survived, which was rebuilt in 1756 on the bell tower of the nearby Saint Michael's Church (destroyed in Soviet times). The tower has been restored, for the period of reconstruction of the church it is used as a temple.

In 2000, the Busha State Historical and Cultural Reserve was established, and archaeological research is being conducted. The Busha Defense Museum is located on the upper tier of the tower, a pavilion of Trypillya culture was opened on the territory of the castle, and an exhibition of modern sculpture was organized.

On the site of the upper settlement there is a Cossack cemetery of the XVIII-XIX centuries with massive stone crosses of various shapes.

The pre-Christian cave church in Bushа was opened by Professor Antonovych in 1883.

He discovered here a unique rock relief depicting the Peace Tree, a rooster, a deer, and a kneeling man. A mysterious rectangle is carved above these figures, which previously contained the inscription "Azm esm Miroboh priest Olhov" (now the inscription is not visible).

Various researchers date the Bushan relief to different historical periods - from the II to the XII century, and some date it to the XVI century. Perhaps the cave was used as a Christian temple. Medieval inscriptions indicate that Catholic monks lived in the cave.

In 1824, local nobleman Romuald Ovsyanyi found and explored the cave, making an inscription: "In memory of 1524. June 3. R. O." (on this day Busha was destroyed by the Tatars).

Currently, the Cave Church is part of the State Historical and Cultural Reserve "Busha". To visit, it is necessary to contact the administration of the reserve.

The old Cossack cemetery in Bushа is located on a mountain that rises above the Busha castle, on the territory of the State Historical and Cultural Reserve "Busha". In the lower part of the cemetery there are graves from the 19th century, in the upper part there are more ancient ones, probably up to the 17th century.

Here you can see many massive stone Cossack crosses of various shapes. They are made from local sandstone, large deposits of which exist in the surrounding area. Among the tombstones there are Cossack crosses of the Maltese type with a circle in the middle, crosses in the form of “clubs”, even more complex in shape - with additional crossbars on the crossbars.

The best panorama of Busha opens from the Cossack cemetery, which is especially expressive in the light of sunset.

Liadova Useknovenskiy Cave Monastery is located on high chalk cliffs with healing springs, from which a stunning panorama of the Dniester valley opens.

According to legend, it was founded in 1013 by Saint Anthony Pechersky, who was returning from Mount Athos to Kyiv at that time. It was the first cave hermitage founded by Anthony Pechersky and the first Christian monastery in this region (the cave church of Anthony Pechersky and his cell, the holy spring have been preserved).

The monastery played an important role in the political life of Ukraine. Thus, in 1649, the abbot of the Liadova monastery, Pavlo, together with the hieromonk Nikifor, became the first ambassadors of Bohdan Khmelnytskyi to the Moscow Tsar Oleksiy Mykhaylovych.

Until 1745, the Basilian monastery was located here. In the 19th century, the cave church of the Beheading of John the Baptist with a bell tower, the church of Saint Paraskeva-Pyatnytsia, and a hotel were built. Some of the buildings were blown up during the Soviet era.

In 1998, the monastery was revived by the monks of the UOC of the Moscow Patriarchate, and many shrines were restored. A steep path leads to the monastery. Visitors must observe traditional formalities in clothing: men in trousers, women in skirts and headscarves.

On October 31, 2022, the Liadova Useknovenskiy Cave Monastery was damaged by a Russian missile attack during the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine. One novice died.

The Church of Saint Demetrius of Thessaloniki in Kukavka is famous for the participation in its creation of the famous portrait artist Vasyl Tropinin.

The Saint Demetrius Church was built in 1806 at the expense of Count Irakliy Morkov, who then owned these lands. Tropinin was a serf of Count Morkov. From 1804 to 1821 (with breaks) he lived in Kukavka, where, in particular, he designed and painted the church of Saint Demetrius of Thessaloniki.

In Soviet times, the murals were painted over, later restored, most of them were taken to museums in Kyiv and Vinnytsia. According to some sources, Tropinin painted the icons "Removal of the Savior from the Cross" and "Four Evangelists" on the walls of the church, as well as individual images in the iconostasis.

Until 1991, the Vasyl Tropinin museum was located in the Saint Demetrius church, which after the return of the church to the faithful moved to the cultural center.

A monument to Vasyl Tropinin by the sculptor Mykola Kryzhanivskyi was erected in front of the church in Kukavka.

The "Podillya Hut" Ethnography Museum is housed in an ancient 130-year-old house in the center of the village of Busha, next to Castle Hill. The museum was opened in 2004.

Tools, dishes, clothes, towels, a chest, a baby cradle, paintings, icons and other items of rural life, collected in the surrounding villages, are presented.

A model of a medieval castle and city fortifications is displayed in the yard.

To visit, you need to contact the administration of the State Historical and Cultural Reserve "Busha".

The forest massif in the canyon of the Bushanka River on the north-western outskirts of Busha has long been called the "Haydamatsky Yar".

Here, sandstone rocks form picturesque landscapes in the middle of a hornbeam forest. The most impressive are the "Mushroom", "Baran", and "Vysiachka" rocks.

After crossing the wooden bridge to the right bank of the Bushanka and climbing a steep path, you can reach the Haydamac rock with a cave, in which, according to legend, in 1768 there was one of the camps of the rebels who fought here.

Entrance to the territory of the "Haydamatsky Yar" nature reserve is paid.

The Mohyliv-Podilskyi Museum of Local History houses its exposition in the former house of the merchant Halperin, built in 1905 in the Art Nouveau style.

The basis of the collection consists of paintings from the collection of Hryhoriy Bronshteyn (Ukrainian, Russian and Georgian authors), as well as the collection of minerals of Volodymyr Afanasyev, collected on the territory of the USSR (1267 samples), samples of furniture from the beginning of the 20th century.

Of great interest are the collections of archaeological finds, numismatics, phalerology and weapons of the 17th-19th centuries. In particular, a Sarmatian cauldron of the 6th century BC, unique household tools of the Trypillya culture, a collection of weapons from the 16th-18th centuries, Cossack arrows and a Turkish rifle, weapons and equipment from the Second World War period.

The ethnographic department presents rural household utensils, Podillya clothes, a collection of works of decorative and applied art by local authors, in particular Podillya embroidery and vytinanka.

The Holy Dormition Church was built in place of the burnt down wooden Cossack church, founded in Ozaryntsi back in 1719.

The parishioners of the Assumption Parish, assigned to the Christmas Church after the fire, could not come to terms with the fact that on major holidays they have to stand outside during the service. In 1882, they sent their representatives to the Metropolitan of Kamyanets-Podilskyi, who allocated part of the funds and sent an architect to the village to build a new church.

The construction dragged on for many years, the parishioners were never able to settle the bill with the architect, and he promised that the church would not stand still for a long time. It was indeed closed in the 1930s, was used for economic purposes for a long time, and still remains in a state of disrepair.

The only monument to the British rock musician John Lennon in Ukraine is located in the center of Mohyliv-Podilskyi, in the square next to the entrance to the city park.

The granite sculpture "Beatle" was created in 1989-1990 by the famous Podillya sculptor Oleksiy Alyoshkin, installed among several other works of the master.

The palace of Podillya marshal Stanislav Komar in Murovani Kurylivtsi was built in 1805 on the basis of fortress buildings of the 16th century.

In the architectural composition of the manor, the architect included parts of the castle buildings: the stone escarpment of the bastion castle on the northern, eastern and southern sides (which includes underground vaulted casemates), and on the western, floor side - the foundations and ruins of the former castle wall. This part of the palace looks very majestic, while on the other side it is an ordinary two-story building in the style of classicism.

A landscape park, the construction of which was managed in 1814 by the famous Irish park builder Dionisiy Mikler (Makkler), who created many wonderful parks in Podillya, is partially preserved.

Among other buildings of the manor that have survived: an arsenal (stable), a wing in the Neo-Gothic style, a stone three-span arched bridge over the Zhvan River.

In the 1960s, the palace underwent a major reconstruction (the lobby was redesigned, the sizes and levels of the windows on the second floor were changed). Now the estate houses a sanatorium-boarding school for children with diseases of the cardiovascular system.

The five-domed church in honor of the Nativity of the Most Holy Virgin Church in Ozaryntsi was founded in 1865 at the expense of Count Chatsky, consecrated in 1868.

It is located on the same place where the first wooden Ozaryntsi Orthodox church was built in 1719.

Inside the Nativity Church there is a two-tier carved iconostasis. Especially revered icons: the Mother of God of the Quick Obedience, Saint Onuphrius.

Only separate fragments have survived from the Ozaryntsi castle, built in 1657, which protected Podillya from the frequent raids of the Tatars along the Volochsky route.

The builders of the fortress were the Cossacks of the Mohyliv colonel Ostap Hohol (the ancestor of Mykola Hohol), and his son Prokop in 1674 received a station wagon for the possession of the Ozaryntsi people from the Polish king.

In 1690, the castle was destroyed by the Turks, but after their expulsion from Podillya in 1699, it was restored again. According to legend, underground passages led from the fortress down under the river and up to the current shopping square.

Later, the castle lost its value and was almost completely dismantled. One of the owners converted its remains into granaries. Until now, sections of the eastern wall, one tier of the entrance tower and the casemate have been partially preserved.

The original building in the neo-Gothic style was built in Mohyliv-Podilskyi at the beginning of the 20th century.

The director of the Mohyliv-Podilskyi post office lived here. The house is now located in the courtyard of the city's communications center.

Needs restoration.