The Saint Nicholas Church – Coastă (Biserica Sfântul Nicolae – Coastă) is a historic Romanian Orthodox church on the slope of Caloianca Hill in the old center of Slatina. The present church was built between 1883 and 1889 on the site of an earlier place of worship dating from 1700. Its distinguishing name, Coastă, refers to its hillside location.
The original church was founded with contributions from local parishioners, including the priest Radu and his wife, Ilinca. By the late 19th century, the building had deteriorated sufficiently to require complete reconstruction, made possible by a bequest from the merchant Iorgu Anghelescu. He left 15,000 gold coins to the municipality for the construction of a church, allowing work to begin in 1883. The masonry and roof were completed by 1887, followed by interior painting by Tache Ionescu and an oak iconostasis carved at the School of Arts and Crafts in Craiova between 1888 and 1889.
During the First World War, artillery fire destroyed the church’s main tower and damaged its roof, leaving the building closed for several years. Restoration was eventually undertaken with support from Nicolae Titulescu and other benefactors, and the church reopened in 1936. The rebuilt tower was accompanied by additional interior paintings by Florea Ștefan Udriște, who completed sections that had been left undecorated during the original reconstruction.
The earthquake of 1977 caused further structural damage, requiring extensive strengthening and restoration between 1982 and 1984. The interior paintings were cleaned and retouched during these works, followed by further conservation in the 1990s.
