The church dedicated to "Saint Nicholas" was the center of the second monastic complex, founded in the 14th century. The largest cluster of cells is located around the church dedicated to the "Assumption of Virgin Mary", which dates back to the 16th-18tjh centuries. At the beginning of the 19th century, this complex was still operating as a skete and in 1842 it was dissolved. In 1828, the church of the skete was built on the hill above the cave complex es, being restored in 1919 as monastery. Until then, the skete was under the administration of Saharna monastery. With the advent of Soviet power, the fate of the sanctuary was sealed. In 1949 the monastic complex was closed and dispossessed of the land with all the household goods. The monastic complex of the hill was taken by the kolkhoz, the church turned into a tobacco warehouse and the cave skete was looted and destroyed. However, high officials have realized the unique value of this historical treasure of our nation. Thus, in 1975, it was taken under state protection. In 1988 the cells are restored and converted into a museum of antiquities. The restaurateurs have found several rock inscriptions dated before Christ. It is supposed that they belonged to a Thracian civilization on the banks of the Dniester River. In 1990, with the support of the Union of Journalists of Moldova and the believers of the surrounding villages, the restoration of the church dedicated to the "Assumption of Virgin Mary" and of two old cells began. Here, over several kilometers along the banks of the Dniester River, hundreds of monuments of our ancient histrory and culture were discovered. The land is unique by its archaelogical wealth diversity: ancient villages and towns, castles, churches, sketes and cemeteries are dug into the abrupt bank. The monastery, protected by this millenary rock, has been for centuries a defence shield for the Moldovans in their fierce strggle for freedom and independence. The monastery-bastion, which saved from Tatar and Turkish slavery many generations of native people, is a vivid expression of the people's memory.
