"Saint Archangels" Wooden Church in Rogoz

You'll find it in the heart of Lăpuș Land. With its impressive spire, reaching up towards the sky, giving you a sense of grandeur, the "Saint Archangels" Wooden Church in Rogoz has surpassed 350 years of existence. It was built in 1663 from elm wood, replacing an older church that was set on fire by the Tatars two years prior.

Today, we stand before an exceptional architectural monument, a true "wooden cathedral," where Western Gothic naïveté harmoniously intertwines with traditional Romanian Orthodoxy. You'll be amazed by the ingenuity of ordinary people, highlighted by the symbolic decorative elements that give a special charm to the holy place. The carved rope motif and rosettes, the 125 horse heads carved at the ends of the beams forming the corbels, the bull heads are just a few of the ornaments worth mentioning. 

The interior painting is also of great value. Though naive, it conveys to the viewer a sense of simplicity, sincerity, and profound joy. If you want to become part of ancient knowledge and offer delight to the soul thirsty for beauty, visit the "Saint Archangels" Wooden Church in Rogoz!

In 1661, the old church of the village was set on fire by the Tatars who were chasing Prince Ioan Kemény, whom they knew had settled somewhere near Lăpuș on his way to Maramureș. This prompted the Orthodox faithful to build a new church. The wooden church dedicated to the "Saint Archangels Michael and Gabriel" was built in 1663.

The walls of the church are entirely decorated with impressively painted biblical scenes. The remarkable painting of the church stands out for its luminosity, with the monument as a whole transporting the believer into the glorious past of our ancestors, where time had a different value. The entire interior ensemble is the work of an important painter from the Lăpuș area, namely Radu Munteanu, originally from the village of Ungureni. He had no formal training, but he knew how to depict in colors, without diminishing, the truth about the history of Christianity.