Attractions of Bilhorod-Dnistrovskyi district

Medieval Akkerman Fortress on the banks of the Dniester estuary - one of the largest and best preserved in Ukraine.

Built on the site of the ancient city of Thira (archeological excavations are underway). Until the 10th century, there were probably fortifications of Slavic tribes of Tiverts and Ulychi.

The building of the citadel belongs to the Genoese period of XIII-XIV centuries. The main fortifications of the Bilhorod-Dnistrovskyi fortress were built during the Moldavian rule (XV century). The total length of the walls is 2 km. Height of walls and towers from 5 to 15 m. 26 of 34 towers have survived.

In 1484 the fortress came under the rule of Turkey, a mosque was built (the minaret is preserved). In 1789 the town of Akkerman was taken without a fight by the Don Cossacks of Matviy Platov together with the Buz Cossacks sent by Prince Potomkin-Tavriysky.

At present, the Akkerman Fortress architectural complex is managed by the Fortress utility company. An exposition of instruments of torture was opened on the territory, siege weapons were displayed in the yard. Music festivals and historical fencing championships are held.

The Armenian Church of the Assumption of the Virgin (Surb Astvatsatsin) has been preserved since the Middle Ages, when a large Armenian community lived in Bilhorod.

The temple has a squat shape, because the Muslim authorities forbade the construction of Christian churches higher than mosques. Over the centuries, the Armenian Church was repeatedly rebuilt and expanded. Ancient paintings and medieval marble slabs (khachkars) with carved inscriptions have been preserved on the walls, the earliest of which dates back to the 10th century.

The Armenian Church operated until 1940. Until recently, it was the base of an archaeological expedition. In 2013, the church was returned to the Armenian community.

On the territory there is a Sarmatian crypt of the 3rd century AD, made of stone slabs, found on the eastern outskirts of the city.

The main exposition of the Bilhorod-Dnistrovskyi Museum of Local Lore is housed in a one-story building in the Empire style, built in the XIX century for the merchant and mayor Mykhaylo Femilidi.

In several halls visitors can get acquainted with the ancient and medieval history of the Northern Black Sea Coast, the history of the city of the XIX and early XX centuries, the nature of the region.

The original objects of life and art of Ancient Greece, numismatic collection, samples of oriental and Russian weapons are presented.

In the next building there is an ethnographic museum, which introduces the traditions of the peoples of the region.

The Greek Church of Saint John the Baptist in Bilhorod-Dnistrovskyi stands on the high bank of the Dniester estuary.

The first wooden temple was founded in the XIII-XIV centuries by Greek merchants from Trebizond. In its current form, the church was rebuilt in 1478-1480, during the Moldavian period, during the reign of Stephen III the Great. The funds for the construction were collected by the Greek community of the city.

According to legend, in the 14th century, Saint Ioann Suchavskyi, a great martyr who is considered the protector of Moldova, was buried on the territory of the Greek Church. The burial place is marked by a chapel to the right of the church. Later, the relics of the saint were reburied in Suceava in the present territory of Romania.

Despite its modest size, the Church of John the Baptist looks very massive and is a rare type of religious building in the architectural heritage of Ukraine.

The underground church of Ioann of Suchavskyi was built in Bilhorod-Dnistrovskyi over a stone well, where, according to legend, the Orthodox saint John of Suchavskyi was killed.

In 1330, the Orthodox merchant John from Turkish Trebizond, who traded in Akkerman, refused to convert to Islam, for which he was tortured by order of the governor of the Golden Horde. A chapel was built on John's grave, and the saint's relics were later moved to Moldavian Suceava (now the territory of Romania). Since that time, he is considered the heavenly patron of merchants.

A spring by the sea, which, according to legend, was often visited by Ioann, was named after him. The water from the Saint Ioann's spring is considered healing, and people come from all over for it.

The Holy Ascension Cathedral is the main Orthodox shrine and the largest temple in Bilhorod-Dnistrovskyi.

Construction on the site of the old Turkish cemetery was carried out from 1815 to 1820 with donations from local residents. Initially, the church had the shape of a ship, but in 1830, three porticos with 4 columns were added, and the cathedral took on the shape of a cross, characteristic of Russian classicism. In 1971, the walls and dome of the cathedral were painted by the family of the artist Piskarev with a group of Moscow artists.

A part of the relics of Saint Ioann of Suchavsky is preserved in the Ascension Cathedral.

A 40-meter-high belfry adjoined the cathedral, which collapsed in 2004 (restoration is underway).

A chapel was built on the territory in honor of the 2000th anniversary of the birth of Christ.

The Lutheran church in Sarata was built and opened in 1840 by German colonists who settled here in 1822. An organ was installed in the church.

After the eviction of the Germans from Bessarabia, the church was closed, the building was not used for its intended purpose - it housed the officers' house, then the cultural center.

Only in 1995, thanks to donations from Germany, the Lutheran church was reconstructed and consecrated again.

Saint George's Church was built in Bilhorod-Dnistrovskyi in 1840 according to the project of the architect Zaushkevych on the order of the Bulgarian community of the city.

There was a church cemetery near the church, which was closed together with the church in 1934. Here are the graves of the family of Princes Volkonsky, who made large donations for the upkeep of the church.

Today the church is active.

Saint Nicholas Church in Kulevcha was founded at the end of the 19th century by Bulgarian immigrants.

In recent years, the temple has become an object of mass pilgrimage thanks to several miraculous icons. The Kazan icon of the Mother of God is called the "Kulevcha miracle". On Easter, it is decorated with fresh lilies, which, after drying, soon sprout again and bloom on the Trinity, framing the image of the Mother of God.

In addition, there are 4 myrrh-flowing icons in the Saint Nicholas Church: the Iver icon of the Mother of God, the Kasperiv icon of the Mother of God, the Calvary Cross, the icon of Faith, Hope, Love and their mother Sophia.

A stone tomb from Scythian times is called a Scythian Grave in Bilhorod-Dnistrovskyi. The crypt was discovered in 1895.

It was a two-chamber structure on the rock, it was made of large (up to 3 meters long, up to 0.6-0.7 meters thick) limestone slabs. Plundered in ancient times. Inside there is an ornament in the form of a wood pattern. There is an assumption that an underground passage from the Akerman fortress was laid to the Scythian grave.

The ancient monument is located in the industrial zone near the seaport and the meat processing plant - access is difficult, but not prohibited.

The modern Shabo winery is based on the ancient traditions of Shabo winemaking. The Turkish name of the village of Shabo - "Asha-abah" ("Lower gardens") - indicates that there were vineyards here already in the 17th century.

The development of winemaking was facilitated by French settlers who arrived in Chabot in 1822. The Swiss scientist and winemaker Louis Tardan planted the first vine here, and already in 1847, his son Karl Tardan presented 8 varieties of Saba wines at the first agricultural exhibition in Chisinau.

Today, on 1,000 hectares of its own vineyards, located between the Dniester estuary and the Black Sea coast, Chabo grows the best grape varieties, many of which were brought over 200 years ago by the first French settlers. The wine is produced using modern cold bottling technologies.

The "Shabo Wine Culture Center" was created at the plant, tours and tastings are held. During the tour, you can visit the ancient Royal Cellar, Sherry Cellar, underground vaults, Cognac Court, Champagne House, cold bottling shop, museum labyrinth.

The Tatarbunary Museum of History and Local Lore was established in 1949 as a museum of the Tatarbunary Uprising, an armed peasant uprising in Tatarbunary organized by the Bolsheviks in 1924 against Romanian rule.

Today the museum has 8 halls and an art gallery. The history of the settlement of the region by numerous peoples is presented, starting with the Cimmerians, Scythians, Polovtsians, Tatars, Turks and ending with the Transdanubian Cossacks.

The main themes of the exposition: ethnography, Tatarbunary uprising, the period of the Second World War, the epoch of collective farms, sports glory of Tatarbunary region, creativity of Tatarbunary artists and poets (in particular works of Odessa artist Viktor Sharapenko).

The museum is located on the second floor of the Palace of Sports.