Polykovichi

In Mogilev district of Mogilev region you can find fairly cozy Polykovichi village, which annually attracts a great number of tourists not only from Belarus but also from abroad. The understanding lies in the fact that one of the cleanest springs in the country is situated here. It is widely regarded a holy one.

From ancient times to the present

Archaeologists determined that the first settlements on the territory of the modern village date back to AD. However, the year of 1501 is considered to be the year of Polykovichi foundation, when the village was first mentioned in the chronicles. Though, it should be mentioned that this area had a slightly different name – Polyikovichi. The word originates from "poluyki" – those days a handful of threadbare flax was called so. And to take account of the fact that the settlement is situated on the banks of the Dnieper, the name was fully justified. The flax could really be grown here.

The Senior of Mogilev Stanislaus Kezgayla is considered to be the first owner of this land in the year of 1522. Later the village became the state land. However, already in the XVII century Prince Casimir Sinitckiy was mentioned as the new owner of the village. During his reign a magnificent palace was built on the territory of Polykovichi. Unfortunately the palace was completely destroyed in the course of time.

In the first Partition of Poland the area was attached to the Russian Empire, and later on became the ownership of the local Major General Ivan Rimsky-Korsakov. The conditioning of the natural spring which is situated here was his merit. The spring will be discussed further.

The Holy Spring of Polykovichi

Actually, the first mention of the spring dates back to the period of Kezgayla, namely 1552. However, Rimsky-Korsakov was the first to equip the spring and the surrounding areas. He built a real galvanized stone grotto with a wooden frame that went down to the spring and facilitated access to the clean water. The water was passing to the special pool through the pipes. Rimsky-Korsakov also initiated the construction of the Church of Holy Paraskeva. Martyr Paraskeva Pyatnitsa is considered to be the patroness of the spring. So the spring is called Pyatnitsky after her. No wonder people still practice pilgrimage to the spring. Especially it is popular among young girls who wish happiness in family life.

According to the study that was undertaken in XIX century, the pure water of the spring was considered the best in the neighborhood. As well it is rich in useful mineral substances.

The above mentioned Church of Holy Paraskeva had a pretty sad story. The fact is that originally it was wooden, so could not resist the onslaught of time. In the 40s of the XX century the church was renovated by the local people. It was used for services. In 1970 there was a fire in the church and the building was almost completely destroyed.

However, the neighborhood of the spring has done that much, and in 2012 the new stone church was built here. It was sanctified in honor of the Holy Trinity.

Today clean water of the Pyatnitsky spring is also used for balneological purposes. According to the current research, it is more than 25% mineralized and has a great healing power. No wonder that in ancient times the local people used the water of the holy spring to heal bleeding, ulcer diseases, dental diseases, angina and many other ailments.

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