Church of St. Demetrius

The Church of St. Demetrius in village of Patalenitsa is dated to the end of the XII century, but according to some researchers it is older and was built on the foundations of an existing church of St. Panteleimon, which gave the name of the village - Patalenitsa. The locals also call it "St. Kurkuleshtitsa", which is associated with a marble slab found in the church with an inscription about its creator and year of its construction - "Made by Gregory, protosvatariy and duks of Plovdiv Kurkua 1090".

For some time (probably after the XIV century when Bulgaria fell under Ottoman rule) the church was covered by earth and was discovered again by local people in the middle of XIX century. In 1870 the building was reconstructed and the name of the military saint St. Demetrius was given. Today it is one of the few well-preserved cruciform churches in Bulgaria.

The Church of St. Demetrius is among the most important medieval monuments and is declared an architectural and artistic monument in Bulgaria.