Cultural life and printed books during the reign of Matei Basarab

In the first half of the 17th century, the crucial time for Romanian culture, the Wallachian throne was occupied by Matei Basarab (1632-1654), a descendant of the brilliant Basarab dynasty, who played an important role in the political development of Muntenia and is associated with some illustrious names in the religious and cultural life of the country. He inherited from his ancestors the zeal for religion and culture and was going to establish churches, schools, and in the first place - printing houses. With the assistance of the Metropolitan of Kiev Peter Mohyla, who had made Ukraine the center of Orthodox culture, he renewed the beautiful tradition of distribution of religious books that originated in the sixteenth century. An important role in the culture of the time of Matei Basarab played the famous scribe Udrişte Năsturel and his sister Princess Elina. The printing activity at this time known as the ?golden age" of Romanian culture was flourishing. In printing centers of Câmpulung Muscel, Govora, the Dealu Monastery, and the Archdiocese of Târgovişte there had been printing 10 titles of books in Slavonic as well as translated books in Romanian. The first Romanian book printed under the reign of Matei Basarab was Pravila de la Govora (1640). Four years later, at the Dealu Monastery there was printed the book Evanghelia învătăţoare, the text of which is slightly different from Cazania lui Varlaam. At the printing house of Târgovişte there were printed: Pogribania preotilor (1650), Mistyrio or Sacrament (1651), Târnosanie, and Îndreptarea legii (1652). The last book has a special significance in the history of the old Romanian literature and is also known as Pravila cea Mare a lui Matei Basarab (The Great Code of Matei Basarab) - a collection of civil and ecclesiastical laws, more complete than the Code of Vasile Lupu. Pravila cea Mare was widely spread all over the Romanian territories, especially in Transylvania, being demanded until the early nineteenth century. Circulation of printed book led to the unity of language and consciousness of the Romanian people.