The Church of Saint Paraskeva – Păcurari (Biserica Sfânta Paraschiva – Păcurari) is an Orthodox church in central Iași, near the Mihai Eminescu Central University Library. The present masonry church was built between 1853 and 1858 through the efforts of priest Constantin Pavelescu, with support from the Hulubei and Tăutu families and members of the parish.
It replaced a wooden church dating from 1730, whose former altar position is still marked beside the present building. Archaeological investigations later uncovered human remains, coins, and traces of an even earlier church beneath the site, suggesting that worship here may extend back to the first half of the 17th century. The older wooden church had been dedicated to the Holy Archangels, while the present church was dedicated to Saint Paraskeva.
Built of brick on stone foundations, the church has a simple rectangular plan with a curved altar apse and a square bell tower above the porch. The nave and narthex are covered by hemispherical vaults, while the iconostasis dates from 1858 and was donated with the church’s original furnishings. Its icons were painted in a Renaissance-influenced style associated with the school of Eustatie Altini. The present wall painting was added between 1957 and 1962 by Nicolae Stoica and Vasile Robea.
The church has also been known as Prapa Doamna or Prepodobna, a Slavic-derived form meaning “Most Venerable,” and as Sfânta Vineri (Saint Friday), reflecting the meaning of the Greek name Paraskeva. Among the objects preserved here are two Gospels printed at Neamț Monastery in 1821 and a silver-covered icon of Saint Nicholas dated 1861.
