ZASTAVNA DISTRICT
Zastavna district is located to the North from Chernivtsi, between the Prut and the Dnister. The district territory is 618 square kilometers, which is 7.6 % of the oblast territory. The district borders on Khotyn Novoselytsa districts in the East, Kytsman district in the West, Ivano-Frankivsk oblast in the North-West and Ternopil oblast in the North, where the Dnister serves as a natural border.
The district administrative center is the town of Zastavna. Its name is connected with the history of Galitia-and-Volyn state. "Zastavna" is a town placed "za stavami" (Ukrainian: "behind the ponds") on the trade road going from the ancient town of Vasyliv to Chernivtsi in the upper part of Sovytsya River. The district economy is mainly based on agriculture.
For many years a unique gray heron colony settles on the Dnister slopes near Babyn village. The colony includes 99 nests placed on 26 oaks at the height of 12-18 meters.
On the right bank of the Dnister River, near Balamutivka village, there is Balamutivska cave, a geological monument of national significance. Rock paintings of the Mesolithic era (about 2 thousand years ago) were discovered in the cave. The paintings display the beliefs of Stone Age people.
There is also Ducha karst cave, a typical emptiness of the Dnister waterside. The length of the explored part of the cave is 114 meters. Interesting gypsum formations were discovered on the cave walls. The cave was explored by speleologists and mapped.
The village of Vasiliv is one of the former settlements of Galician Rus. It is an annalistic village on the banks of Dnister River. According to archaeological research there was a village on the territory of the current Vasiliv village in the II century. A trade road along the Dnister passed through this village. Historical sources mention a hill on the top of which there was Vasilivski cathedral built in 1230. The cathedral was 35 meters high and was remaining there for 500 years, having ceased its existence in the second half of the XVII century. The remains of the cathedral have great historical value as it was one of the most distinguished temples known in Ukrainian land. Wide research of archeological monuments of ancient Vasiliv is reflected in the exhibits of Chernivtsi museum of local lore.
The village of Vaslovivtsi is the homeland of Evhen Hakman, the first metropolitan of Bukovyna (1793-1873). Thanks to the metropolitan Hakman the self-dependent Bukovynian canonical Orthodox branch was existing for 70 years. A cathedral and the metropolitan's residence in Chernivtsi were built under his assistance. The village is also famous for the Berda mountain, which is the highest point not only of the Khotyn height, but of the entire Eastern European Plain as well. The name of the mountain comes from the name of a detail of a loom ("berda"), as the place’ appearance resembles one.
The village of Vikno is famous for its park, which is a monument of garden and park art. The park was founded in 1860 and occupies the area of 2.7 hectares. There are 28 types of trees in the park with such rare types as ginkgo and plane tree among them. There are three 180-250 year-old oaks and a chestnut alley. This park has scientific, cultural and aesthetic significance.
There is a military cemetery on one of the hills near Zveniachyn village. 11,830 soldiers and officers of Austro-Hungarian, German and Russian armies who died in battles of 1914-1918 are buried there. The cemetery was established during the World War I.
There is a natural geological monument, a unique three-storied cave in Dovhiy Yar tract next to Pohorilivka village. The cave is a rare case of a vivid example of nine out of eleven stages of karst process development. The length of the explored part is 377 meters. This unique natural monument is a labyrinth of rare beauty.
ZASTAVNA FROM THE SPACE