“Nativity of the Mother of God” Church – Neguțători (Greci)

"NATIVITY OF THE MOTHER OF GOD" CHURCH – NEGUȚĂTORI (GRECI) Initially called Popii Mihai Church, later called Greci Church, then Neguțători Church, it is considered the oldest place of prayer in the city of Buzău, probably the only parish church existing in the city until after 1500, when the Diocese of Buzău was founded. On 16th February 1585, the Bishop of Buzău, the famous calligrapher Luca of Cyprus (1583-1604), secures a donation of a merchant, Petru the Elder, for Popii Mihai Church. The presence of the Greeks in Buzău, which became more and more consistent since the end of the 16th century, when the grain and cattle trade to the Ottoman Empire was developing, enabled the Greek colony here to build its own church and school. Matei Basarab, the ruler who rebuilt the bishop's church of Buzău from the ground up, supported his friend, the merchant Badea Obredi from Brăila, to build Greci Church in 1649, on the site of an older place of worship, Popii Mihai Church. Until the beginning of the 19th century, Greek was the language of worship here, as evidenced by the rich and valuable collection of ritual books in Greek, printed in Venice between 1673 and 1684, in the church archive. Substantial changes have been made to the building over the years, the current large basilica - type style church dating from 1850 and the bell tower, with its ground floor of carved stone, first floor of brick and second floor of plank, from 1873. The porch attached to the church, of metal and glass, with a classical gable on 4 stone columns, is of more recent date. The interior painting belongs to painter Dimitrie Nicoleanu. The carving of the iconostasis and the pulpit, in high relief, with ornaments representing vines, grapes and flowers, is in Baroque style. On one of the books of worship, sexton Gheorghe Canațule noted on 9th June 1917: "We have written to eternal remembrance the season of war, the German armies being in Buzău, taking away our church bells." The ensemble of Neguțători Church (Greci) - the church and the bell tower - dedicated to the "Nativity of the Mother of God" is included in the List of Historical Monuments BZ-II-a-A-02321.