Antoniev Monastery

It stands along the right bank of the Volkhov River north of the city centre and forms part of the Historic Monuments of Novgorod and Surroundings, a World Heritage Site.

The monastery was founded in 1117 by St Anthony of Rome, who, according to legend, flew to Novgorod from Rome on a rock (the alleged rock is now in the vestibule just to the right of the main door into the Church of the Nativity of the Mother of God beneath a fresco of Bishop Nikita of Novgorod).

Anthony was consecrated hegumen of the monastery in 1131 by Archbishop Nifont (1130–1156) and was buried beneath a large slab to the right of the altar in the same church.

A significant part of its lands were confiscated after the conquest of Novgorod by Moscow however the monastery gradually restored its position thanks to gifts and acquisitions.

The cult of St Anthony, the founder of the monastery, increased in importance after the miraculous discovery of his remains in 1597.