• The monastery became a place of prophecy and the unlikely home to the last remaining frescoes of Dionysius

MOSCOW

There’s an old Russian proverb: “Whatever is done is for the best.” It means that what feels like failure in the moment can, with time, blossom into something enduring.

Such is the story of the Ferapontov Monastery in northern Russia, whose history is shaped by a string of seeming defeats, but which ultimately became a cultural gem recognized by UNESCO.

Legend has it that monks Kirill and Ferapont left Moscow’s prestigious Simonov Monastery for the remote Belozersky region in the late 14th century, puzzling their peers who could not understand why two elderly men would abandon city comforts for the wild northern lands.

But Kirill and Ferapont were resolute, Igor Khobotov, an expert at the Museum of Frescoes of Dionysius in Ferapontov, told Anadolu. They reached the shores of Lake Siverskoye – roughly 500 kilometers (310 miles) north of Moscow – and founded a monastery that later became known as Kirillo-Belozersky.

Despite harmonious beginnings, the monks’ coexistence proved short-lived.

By 1398, Ferapont left, establishing his own secluded monastery 18 kilometers (11 miles) away. Skeptics doubted it could survive, given Kirill’s greater renown and the site’s remoteness. But Ferapont insisted that his pursuit of solitude outweighed any search for recognition, Khobotov said.

Meanwhile, Kirill’s monastery flourished, attracting heavy investment from the Russian tsar. It grew into a mighty fortress frequented by the powerful.

“Ferapont’s monastery never reached such worldly heights. Yet its peace and isolation attracted many seekers, including those who would be remembered as saints. And it was within these quiet walls that some of Russia’s most striking prophecies were spoken,” Khobotov explained.

One such prophecy came when Tsar Vasily III, after failing to conquer Kazan, stopped at Ferapontov on his return from Kirillo-Belozersky. There, a “holy fool” – one of the prophetic eccentrics of the Eastern Orthodox tradition – told him: “You will not take Kazan. Your son will.”

The Tsar scoffed – he was aging, childless and not expecting an heir. But the prophecy came true.

He later married the young princess Elena Glinskaya, who gave birth to Ivan, later known as Ivan the Terrible. Ivan conquered Kazan and, in celebration, built one of Russia’s most iconic landmarks: St. Basil’s Cathedral on Red Square.

The construction of the Ferapontov Monastery progressed slowly. Resources were scarce, and there was no great patron to fund it. But those who labored on its buildings worked with care, devotion and love, Khobotov said, and each structure emerged beautiful and enduring.

Ferapontov’s painted soul

Russian tradition holds that only three icon painters stand above all others: Theophanes the Greek, Andrey Rublev, and Dionysius.

After Dionysius, no master reached such heights, Khobotov said.

When the Ferapontov Monastery was still young, Dionysius had already grown old. He sought a final act of devotion, a good deed to honor his soul. Rulers from great cities vied for his artistry, offering riches and prestige, but none of these invitations sat right with him and he declined them all.

According to legend, gravely ill, he prayed: “Lord, do not let me die before I have completed my last good deed. Show me the place.”

That night, he dreamt of a quiet monastery by a shining lake. A voice whispered its name – Ferapontov. When he awoke, he found his strength returning. Without delay, he gathered his paints and set out.

His decision caused uproar. People scoffed again – “Why waste your final work on such a forgotten place?” they asked. “You’ll vanish into obscurity with your senile whims,” they warned.

But Dionysius ignored them and even financed the project himself, purchasing the finest pigments – lapis lazuli, malachite, vulcanite – precious minerals that traveled from Syria, Türkiye and Afghanistan through European markets.

A single gram of these pigments could cost more than 200 grams of gold, Khobotov said.

And fate preserved his choice – the murals he painted at the Ferapontov Monastery are the only documented works of Dionysius that have survived to this day. All others were lost as temples were destroyed, churches burned and icons painted over.

The forgotten monastery that time remembered

In 1799, on the monastery’s 400th anniversary, its gates were closed. It remained inactive for over a century, sleeping quietly until the dawn of the 20th century.

It reopened in 1904 as a women’s monastery, but by 1924 the Soviet government had shut it again.

What saved the Ferapontov Monastery from destruction was a simple stroke of bureaucracy – it was declared a museum.

During World War II, German planes flew overhead and air defenses were stationed inside, but the site survived unscathed.

In 2000, the Ferapontov Monastery was added to the UNESCO World Heritage List, finally earning the global recognition it long deserved.