Rila Monastery

Rila Monastery

Courtyard
Monastery information
Order	Eastern Orthodox
Established	927
People
Founder(s)	Saint Ivan of Rila
Site
Location	Rila Mountains, Bulgaria
UNESCO World Heritage Site
Official name	Rila Monastery Complex
Criteria	Cultural: (vi)
Reference	216-001
Inscription	1983 (7th Session)
Area	8.7 ha (940,000 sq ft)
Website	rilskimanastir.org/en/
Coordinates	42°08′00″N 23°20′25″E / 42.13333°N 23.34028°E / 42.13333; 23.34028
Location of Rila Monastery in Bulgaria

The Monastery of Saint John of Rila, also known as Rila Monastery ("Sveti Ivan Rilski" (Bulgarian: Рилски манастир „Свети Иван Рилски“), is the largest and most famous Eastern Orthodox monastery in Bulgaria. It is situated in the southwestern Rila Mountains, 117 km (73 mi) south of the capital Sofia in the deep valley of the Rilska River ("Rila River") at an elevation of 1,147 m (3,763 ft) above sea level, inside of Rila Monastery Nature Park. The monastery is named after its founder, the hermit Saint Ivan of Rila (876 – 946 AD), and houses approximately 60 monks. The monastery is a popular pilgrimage site for many Orthodox Christians.

Founded in the 10th century, Rila Monastery is regarded as one of Bulgaria's most important cultural, historical and architectural monuments and is a key tourist attraction for both Bulgaria and Southern Europe for religious tourists. In 2008 alone it attracted 900,000 visitors.^[1] The monastery is depicted on the reverse of the 1 lev banknote issued in 1999.^[2]