Legendary Borschiv

30 July 2012 Travel time: with 15 July 2012 on 15 July 2012
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And why was I previously convinced that Crimea and the Carpathians are the most interesting places in Ukraine? I can't say. And I know a little bit of history, and I listened to stories. To paraphrase the old saying: "it is better to see once than to hear a hundred times" - "It is better to visit once than to see a hundred times". And three times better! ! ! ! ! I liked this amazing region.

The reason for the trip was the announcement that in the Ternopil region the city of Borshchiv is preparing to set five records, which should be included in the Book of Records of Ukraine. And all the records are related to embroidery. Resolved, we go to Borshchiv.

And here we are at the bus station of the railway station, as they say in Kiev "pit". Kyiv-Borshchiv minibuses depart from here every day, and in six hours and UAH 80 you can get there without any problems.


Leaving Kyiv at 6 pm, we are there. In the city, we settled in the colorful recreation complex "Comfort", which is successfully located on the ring road.

Rooms are two-storey, made of natural wood and decorated in the national style. Very stylish! And on the territory of the complex there are a lot of coniferous trees, bushes from which the already clean air of the region is filled with aromatic oils.

But the main difference of the complex (without a doubt! ) Is the reconstruction of the Lemko house - a real museum of folk architecture and life, which can be used as a small banquet hall. Another banquet hall is made in the form of a Bandera hideout. There is a table above the lake, a table in a gypsy caravan, just gazebos and tables. And there is a real "Lenin's Corner", completely with Soviet diplomas, newspapers and other relevant attributes. And there is a restaurant, Russian bath, swimming pool, zoo, playground.

Admiring the beauty in the morning, we went to get acquainted with the city. After all, Borshchov is a unique city of its kind.

The first mention of the town of Borshchiv as the property of the Dudynsky nobles dates back to 1456 and since then the town has never changed its name. The city repeatedly changed owners, suffered from devastating raids and wars and rebuilt. However, it was not of strategic or military importance, so its status usually did not rise above the usual provincial town. According to legend, the purely Ukrainian name for the city became established after the borsch helped defeat the Turks. "Raids by militant neighbors were common and very common in this region, " says the head of the Borshchiv Museum of Local Lore, Mikhail Petrovich Sokhatsky. "Our region also suffered from them. " Once, when the Turks attacked the wooden fortress and began to climb the walls, the inhabitants gathered in one pot borsch from all the cauldrons, heated it and began to water the fat, hot mass of the Turks.


The frightened enemies quickly lifted the siege and for a long time, then bypassed this place. " According to another legend, the name of the city gave the plant borage, which grew in the county, and half a thousand years ago was used for cooking.

And locals say that Borschov is home to the famous Ukrainian borsch. And even a borsch festival is held. Residents from 48 villages of Borshchiv district come to compete in the art of cooking and serving borscht.

But the main attraction, the calling card of Borshchiv region is an embroidered shirt embroidered with black threads. According to an ancient legend, the dominant black color is associated with specific events in tragic history. In the XV-XVII centuries Borshchiv region was a constant target of attacks by Turks and Crimean Tatars. Enemies ruthlessly ravaged and looted, destroyed or captured the population.

After one such attack, in which the Turks killed all men, girls and women, mourning their bitter fate, from seven villages - Bilche Zolotoi, Monastyrka, Shuparka, Korolivka, Strilkivtsi, Mushkareva, Myshkova swore for seven generations to mourn the victims. and get married in shirts embroidered with black threads.

Unfortunately, in the 1920s (it was the seventh generation of inhabitants) the secrets of Borshchiv embroidery were, in fact, lost. After all, its peculiarity was that the ornament was not repeated on any shirt and was made of coarse black woolen thread, did not fade ...After the war, the patterns began to be repeated. Tells Maria Furda, a weaver. It is a pity that unique techniques have not survived. For example, "block", the texture of which is similar to ornamental wood carving.

"Embroidery" is a prerogative of the Transnistrian districts of Podillya, in the Borshchiv region.

Another feature of Borshchiv shirts is carefully bleached hemp cloth.

We heard all this when we visited the museum of local lore. The museum has four departments: historical and local lore, T. Shevchenko Museum, art gallery and cave-museum "Verteba" in the village of Bilche-Zolote. To get to the cave, you must report it to the Museum of Local Lore.


It was in the halls of the Museum of Local Lore that the presentation of the VI festival "Embroidered shirts in the Borshchiv region" took place, which will take place on September 8-09.2012. This year, during the celebrations, Borshchov is preparing to set 5 records to be entered in the Book of Records of Ukraine:

1. The largest embroidery

2. The largest doll-motanka

3. The longest sheet

4. Most knots in the embroidered shirt

Back in Borschiv you can see the Church of Our Lady of the Scapular, built in 1763. The three-tiered bell tower was rebuilt from the defensive tower of the ancient castle of the XVII century.

and the Greek Catholic Church of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin in 1886. There is a copy of the miraculous icon in this church with the image of the Mother of God in a black embroidered shirt.

Not far from Borschiv is Bilche Zolote with the famous Verteba Cave (reference "Verteba" for the ancient Slavs - the cave).

It is known from stories that the cave was discovered by chance during a hunt in 1823 by the owner of local lands Adam Potocki. A large number of ceramics, which originally adopted belong to Roman culture, later turned out to be objects of Trypillia civilization. This was 30 years ahead of its official opening in 1850 in the village of Trypillya, near Kyiv.

The length of the cave labyrinths is 8 km. Today the cave is under the supervision of employees of the Borshchiv Historical Museum, who are continuing their research. The value of the cave is that it is the only underground museum of Trypillia culture in natural conditions.

And for reference - about staying in the cave in memory, in addition to photos taken, you can buy a tourist stamp.

And we go further and, after driving only a few kilometers, we get to the village of Monastyrok. Here on the people. Seret, preserved cave temple (IX-XII centuries. ).

Impressive everything. And caves carved into the mountain, and huge stones in blocks.

At the altar of the temple "Jesus with his eyes closed". Locals say that on Jesus' advice they painted with paint, but the icon later reappeared in the photo. It is claimed that this is due to the fact that the place is very wet.


Before entering the temple, the second mysterious place is a huge stone weighing several tons for sacrifices. The block lies on three stone pedestals. On the surface of the altar there is a carved cross and a bloodstain. In any, even the driest weather, there is water in the cross. She is red!

Departing near the hermitage we find a modest stone church of the Exaltation (XVIII century.

), next to it - rectangular stone cells of the Basilian monastery (1600). From the church to the hermitage leads the Calvary (Way of the Cross): 12 wooden crosses are buried in the rocky soil.

Our path continues and the most interesting object is ahead. The village of Okopi. This is now the Trenches and never. And before the name was - "Trenches of the Holy Trinity - the blockade of Kamianets-Podilskyi. "

The village at the confluence of the rivers Zbruch and Dniester. The place is the most beautiful. The main attraction of the village of Okopy is an inconspicuous low earthen rampart and a shallow earthen ditch behind the village. In fact, it is one of the greatest archeological monuments of Ukraine - Trayanov Val. The embankment stretches through the village tens of kilometers north to Satanov and hundreds of kilometers to the south. It was built during the reign of the Roman emperor Trajan. Now it is an unremarkable low earthen rampart, 3-4 m high.

, Height 5-6m. densely overgrown with trees and shrubs.

Translated automatically from Ukrainian. View original
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