The Monastery Gura Motrului is found built up close to an ancient monastic skete.
According to the tradition of the place, the oldest skete would have been built by the Pious Saint Nicodim the Sainted, somewhere around the end of the XIVth century. The wooden small church and the few sanctums of the skete were surrounded by a vineyard (grape vine), kept for a period of time, in the southern part of the current monastery. Until not so long ago, the vineyard was called “the Saint’s vineyard”. For its part, the spring from the proximity of the monastery was called, until today, “Saint Nicodim Spring”. Although the local traditions are very powerful, from the ancient skete weren’t found any kind of documents, or archeological traces or cult objects.
In a charter of the voivode Neagoe Basarab, given on the date of the 13th of January 1519, it is mentioned the fact that at Gura Motrului there already exists a well built monastery, dedicated to the Saint Pious Parascheva, which was built by the “boos Harvat”, great logothete of the prince. For its own maintenance, the monastery from Gura Motrului received properties in the villages Susita and Grosieri.
Between the years 1642 and 1643, the monastery from Gura Motrului will be re-built, from the foundation, by Matei Basarab, prince of Wallachia. Although this things wasn’t recorded anywhere, which is why we have the confession of the patriarch Partenie of Constantinople, who, around the year 1640, says about this monastery the fact that “being old and forgotten for many years and damaged, Matei Basarab built it up from the foundation with much expenses and effort and freshen with many holly vessels and moving benefices”.
In the year 1653, the central church of the monastery was re-built, from the foundation, by the great High Steward Preda Brâncoveanu.
The big church of the Monastery Gura Motrului was painted in a wall painting between the years 1702 – 1704, on the expense of the Saint Constantin Brâncoveanu.
Later on, in the year 1852, the church’s painting was redone, on the expense of the prince Barbu Știrbei Vodă, as well as by the efforts of the archimandrite Eufrosim Poteca, the monastery’s guardian. The original wall paintings were covered with a protective layer, over which there were put new wall paintings. This thing is also registered, in an inscription situated in the porch: “This reparation of the painting, according to the original style, was executed by the good will of His Grace Barbu D. Știrbei, the commanding prince of all the Wallachia, releasing the expense from the Central House, and by the endeavor of His Piety, the archimandrite Eufrosin Poteca, the Father Superior of this Holy Monastery from Gura Motrului, in the year 1852, the painter Nita Stoenescu.”
