The earliest mention of a monastery in the zone of Probota village dates from 1398. Where it stood, is not known. In 1530, Prince Petru Rareş decided to build a new church for the monastery in Probota to house the tombs of his family, the present church of St. Nicholas. The other monastic buildings were built between the years 1530 and 1550, and the surrounding walls in 1550. The church, which is one of the largest of the painted churches, stands in the middle of the compound. Both the exterior and the interior frescoes were restored by UNESCO between 1997 and 2000. The exterior frescoes are not very well preserved; especially the north façade has lost most of them. During the same restoration project, the compound was excavated, and several monastic buildings were found. The partly restored ruins can be seen on the south side of the compound. The two main themes of the south façade are The Akathistos Hymn, a prayer to the Holy Virgin, and The Tree of Jesse, the Old Testament genealogy of Christ. Above them is a row of medallions depicting Archangels. On the east apse remain some standing figures of prophets and saints in the scene of The Prayer of All Saints. n the west façade is the most striking architectural feature of the church, the four large Gothic windows.

Under the still colourful Archangels, there are the very faint scenes of The Life of St. Nicholas. The main entrance to the church is through the southern door of the exonarthex. Eight Gothic windows cover three of the walls from corner to corner and fill the exonarthex with light. The well-preserved representation of The Last Judgment spreads on the vault and most of the walls. The next space is the pronaos with its twin domes and large windows. On the domes are painted The Virgin Mary and St. Anne. Below them are The Seven Ecumenical Councils. The walls are covered with The Menologion, the Orthodox calendar of saints. The same theme continues in the burial chamber, a room especially built for the crypts of Prince Petru Rareş, his wife Elena, and other family members. Altogether seven people were buried here, although only three restored tombstones are now in place. On the south side are the tombstones of the princely couple. On the north side of the room is the tomb of Stefan Rareş, one of their sons. The naos of St. Nicholas Church is a square room, with two lateral apses topped with half-domes, and four arches. The main theme of the naos is The Cycle of Christ's Passion. The tower dome, as the highest part of the church, symbolizes Heaven. Here is placed without exception the representation of Christ Pantocrator (The Almighty), blessing the congregation below. Behind the iconostasis is the chancel, forbidden to the congregation. The half-dome of the chancel is covered by a remarkable representation of The Holy Virgin with the Child Worshipped by Angels Below are scenes illustrating the most important moments in the life of Jesus. In the middle of the chancel is the stone altar, the most important part of the whole church.