At about 25 km south of the city of Ramnicu Valcea and 10 km north of the locality of Babeni, on the Olt river valley, in the village of Francesti and separated by a hill from "Surpatele" and "Govora" abbeys, the picturesque "Dintr-un lemn" (one tree) Monastery is like an open gate towards the heaven for those who come with innocent and pure thoughts to find a shelter inside its walls for a certain lapse of time.

According to an old local tradition, "Dintr-un lemn" Monastery was founded in the first decade of the 16th century when a little church made of only one oak tree was raised there. The latter was built as a tribute to the Holy Virgin icon that is kept today in the stone church subsequently built within the precincts of the monastery. The abbey was first mentioned by Deacon Paul of Aleppo who accompanied Patriarch Macharios of Antiochia during his journey to the Romanian Countries, between 1653-1658. Deacon Paul wrote that a monk had allegedly found an icon of the Virgin in the hollow of an oak tree. That very moment he was seemingly hearing a voice that encouraged him: "I would like you to build a wooden monastery from this oak tree, here, for me." Following that urge, the monk raised a little wooden church made of an oak tree. However, the visitor who enters the monastery is somehow "trapped" because before reaching the little wooden church, he first sees in front of his eyes the stone church raised by Matei Basarab and restored by Serban Cantacuzino (1715). Near the entrance, a few stone stairs guide the visitor along the cells towards the lawn stretching behind them.

Five big oak trees, maybe as old as the monastery itself, look as if they were a link between the earth and the sky. A carved icon was hidden in the hollow of one of the oak trees, while the other hollows shelter various pieces of paper, containing as many prayers addressed to the Lord. At the end of the path, we finally arrive in front of the little church which is only 4 m high and 5,5 m wide. The wonder icon, which had actually laid at the origin of the construction of the small church, is piously preserved today in the big stone church of the monastery, and it is definitely the most precious historical and art object of the whole settlement. The impressive size and the beauty of this ancient icon have stirred the curiosity of many famous researchers in the religious art domain. Close to "Dintr-un lemn" Monastery, we find another abbey, in the village of Frincesti, called "Surpatele". The first written evidence about the existence of this church placed under the sign of the Holy Trinity, dates back to 1512, in the time of Neagoe Basarab and it was raised by the noble Buzescu family. The church is built in the specific Romanian "Brancovenesc" architectural style. The original inside painting of a remarkable beauty was made in 1707 by a few famous painters among whom Andrei, Iosif Ieromonahul, Hranite and Stefan. At the entrance of the church, the visitor can admire a genuine Orthodox Icon of the Holy Trinity illustrated by the three Angels fed by Abraham at the Mamvri's Oak Tree.