St. Spas Church Under Bulbank

The remnants may be seen from Todor Alexandrov Blvd. in the foundations of UniCredti Bulank HQ.

The church is part of a larger archeological site. It existed for a very long time – from the end of the 12th to the end of the 18th centuries to the end of the 19th century (1884) – and went through four restructurings.

St. Spas Church features one nave, a tiny nartex, and an apsida that is pentagonal on the exterior and heptagonal on the interior. Annexes are formed in the northern and southern walls, just in front of the iconostasis. The naos’ walls are articulated by three small arched niches apiece. The church’s foundation was made with bigger oval stones cemented with clay, and the walls were erected using “cellular masonry” — the stones joined together with plaster and enclosed by bricks.

Several layers of mural paintings have been preserved. The first mural paintings from the 15th to 19th centuries show the skills of a skilled painter. The pictures are both stark and lively. The church was restructured and repainted in brilliant, cheerful colors in the mid-nineteenth century. Around the chapel, a large medieval necropolis was unearthed.