The monograph "Between Sin and
Punishment" discusses the didactic themes of the Christian
monumental painting in South-Western Bulgaria: Confession of the
Righteous and the Sinner, The Wheel of Life, Death of the
Righteous, Death of the Sinner, Saint Michael Takes the Soul of the
Rich, as well as the particularly popular fresco called The
Punishments of Sinners in Hell. These type of frescos began to be
painted during the Bulgarian Renaissance. They are interpreted
mainly by the late representatives of the Bansko Art School -
Mikhalko Golev, Dimitar Sirleshtov and their assistants.
Field studies of the fresco
decoration of the South-Western
Bulgarian churches was carried out in 2019 by a
group of scientists from the Department of Cultural Studies at
Neofit Rilski University. All researches are funded by National
Research Program Cultural and Historical Heritage. National Memory
and Social Development (KINNPOR).