REPOSITORIES NATIONAL TOURISM

ORGANISATION
of SERBIA
SERBIAN MONASTERIES STARI RAS
BETWEEN EAST AND WEST
KOSOVO AND METOHIJA
RISE OF SERBIAN EMPIRE
In the picturesque gorge of the West Morava, on the precipitous slopes
of Ovar and Kablar mountains, there is a unique community of monas-
teries known as the Serbian Holy Mountain. The monasteries were being
built in XIVand XVcenturies, in the turbulent times when the Turkish Em-
pire put the Serbian territory under control. Retreating fromthe Turkish
conquerors, Serbianmonks foundasolitary andisolatedspot inthe gorge
and started building the monasteries. Tradition has it, that there were
more than forty monasteries on that small space, and today there are
ten: Blagovetenje (Annunciation), Vavedenje (Presentation of Mary),
Vaznesenje (Ascension), Ilinje, Jovanje, Nikolje, Preobraenje (Trans-
guration), Sretenje (Presentation of Jesus at the Temple), Uspenje (As-
sumption) and Svete Trojice (The Holy Trinity) monasteries. For centu-
ries, those monasteries preserved the orthodox spirituality and national
awareness of the Serbs. Refugees also hid here - in the gorge and nearby
caves. Cultural and artistic activities were never discontinued in the Ser-
bian Holy Mountain - even in the most difcult of times. In XVI century,
schools for copying books worked there, churches were decorated with
frescoes, icons were painted and valuable objects were designed.
MONASTERIES OF
OVAR-KABLAR GORGE
HARBOUR OF SERBIAN CULTURE
FRUKA GORA
SERBIAN HOLY MOUNTAIN
MORAVIAN SERBIA
ON EUROPEAN DEFENSIVE WALL
FREE
ISSUE
n Serbia, there are more than two hundred mon-
asteries, 54 of which, have been declared cul-
tural monuments, while Stari Ras (Old Ras) with
Sopoani, Studenica and the medieval Serbian
monasteries in Kosovo and Metohija, namely Deani,
Graanica, Peka patrijarija (Patriarchate of Pe) and
Bogorodica Ljevika (Our Lady of Ljevi) have been in-
scribed onto the UNESCO world cultural heritage list.
Noted for their important cultural and spiritual herit-
age which are of permanent value to European history,
and indeed, the whole world.
Hidden in wooded areas, under clifs or on the moun-
tain rivers sources, the monasteries enshrine the se-
renity of monastic life. Close by refectories, temporary
lodgings and repositories were built, and stone walls
protected them. Yet, historically, the Serbian monas-
teries have not isolated themselves from the rest of
the world. They have always been places for people to
gather, as is the case today andtheir gates remainopen
to welcome visitors.
In the Middle Ages, monasteries were very signicant:
As the European culture was developing under the ae-
gis of the church, places for praying and pilgrimage be-
came national anchorages and hotbeds for education
and art. Knowing and understanding their role and sig-
nicance, all Serbian rulers without exception, starting
with the Nemanji family, built numerous monasteries.
Instead of building sumptuous palaces, these ghters
for high principles built monasteries as their pledge for
the future. Their endowments testify to their donators
faith, perseverance and devotion to spiritual values,
and also to the creative energy of that era.
The thriving popularity of the Serbian monasteries started with Stefan
Nemanja, the founder of the Serbian state, in the second half of XII cen-
tury. In the vicinity of the rst residence, the town of Ras, the monaster-
ies Sv. Nikola (St. Nicholas) in Kurumlija, Sv. Bogorodica (Our Lady)
in Toplica and urevi stupovi (Georges Pillars) emerged one after an-
other; however, in later eras, they were unfortunately heavily stricken. As
a church builder, Nemanja laidthe foundations for a centuries-longrulers
tradition, and his last endowment, the monastery of Studenica, was a
great building that future builders identied with.
As the Byzantine power weakened in XIII century, an opportunity arose
for Nemanjas successors to build the state and cultural identities of their
country. In ia, Stefan the First-Crowned was crowned king, and Sava
Nemanji made the monastery the centre of the independent Serbian
Archbishopric. The idea of an ideal Christian blend of the Church and the
state was embodied in the monasteries as such, they became spiritual,
political and cultural centres. It was here that the most important pages
in Serb history were written.
In XIII century, following a critical point in terms of interests and inu-
ences, Serbia created its national art, which resulted froma blend of in-
uences typical of the Romanesque and Byzantine arts. The originality of
such an art blend was manifested in the Bogorodina crkva (Our Ladys
Church) in Studenica, permeated with the Romanesque style in the dec-
oration of the marble faades and in the sculpture on the portals and the
windows; however, its interiority is spiritually Byzantine andthe walls are
painted with frescoes of surreal beauty.
The monumental Beli Aneo (White Angel) in the monastery of Mileeva
is the most beautiful example of that extraordinary style based on har-
mony and the classical ideals of beauty. In Sopoani, built a little later,
that style reached perfection. The solemn and rejoicing Sopoani gures
exude internal beauty with dignied expression. That is the antique con-
cept of art, a sort of Renaissance celebrating the beauty of human na-
ture. Sopoani is the Sistine Chapel of the Serbian Middle Ages.
The most beloved Serbian Queen, JelenaAnujska (HelenAnjou), was the
one to bring the touch of the Gothic style to Serbia. The French princess,
married to King Uro I, is fondly remembered to have been a great ben-
efactress, and the rst female donator in Serbia. Her endowment Gradac
was built on the example of Studenica, with the interweaving of the
French Gothic style elements.
At the beginning of XIVcentury, King Milutin relocated the capital of Ser-
biatoPrizren(Kosovo) andwent toconquer Byzantiums southernterrito-
ries. A ve-year-old Byzantine princess, Simonida, who, as the guarantor
of peace, was married to Milutin and brought to Serbia Constantinoples
education, ceremonies, dress, food and culture, and as such, the Serbian
culture was transformed in direct contrast with Imperial Byzantium.
Inhis life, KingMilutinbuilt more than40endowments. Throughout Kos-
ovo, famous builders fromConstantinople andThessaloniki built church-
es in the formof a cross in a square, with one or ve domes, whose exte-
rior was intricately decorated with stones and bricks. The masterpiece of
that particular style is Graanica, a harmonious and dynamic building,
where the Byzantine ideaof the church as apicture of universe is perfect-
ly realized. KingMilutinbrought the distinguishedByzantine painters Mi-
chael and Euthychios to decorate his endowments. Their extraordinary
frescoes in Bogorodica Ljevika, as well as in other royal endowments
represent the most beautiful Constantinoples pieces of art of that era.
After Milutins death, the conquering continued in the south and, si-
multaneously, estate-owners and ecclesiastical circles abruptly gained
greater power. They became the new donators and built more and more
monasteries. Peka patrijarija was the spiritual center of the state and
also the place where the Serbian state reached the peak of its fame in
Pe, Stefan Duan was crowned Emperor and Serbia became an empire.
Throughout Duans vast empire, monasteries were also signicant edu-
cational and cultural centres. There, books were translated and copied,
schools and big libraries established, and, in the imperial monastery of
Deani, there was also the renowned school for icon-painting.
KOSOVO is currently administrated by UNMIK based on United Nations
Security Council Resolution No.1244.
The powerful empire of the Serbian Middle Ages fell after Emperor
Duans death. After the Turks had penetrated into the Balkan Peninsula,
the states ruling centre relocated to the west, to the valley of the Mora-
va. However, besides the chaotic political circumstances, in the state of
Prince Lazars and his son Despot Stefans, culture surprisingly ourished.
Faced with the Islamic invasion in a long and almost incessant war-
ring during the last decades of XIVand in the rst half of XVcentury, the
monasteries became real fortications. Ravanica and Manasija are sur-
rounded by the great walls fortied with tall towers for defending from
the Turks attacks. Withinthe monasteries walls, Serbiadeedthe enemy
with its culture, which was the ultimate defence. Despot Stefan accom-
modated the learned, writers and artists from conquered countries. In
Manasija, the Resava Manuscript School worked hard, and, there, the
despot himself wrote his Slovo ljubve, one of the most beautiful poems
of the Serbian medieval poetry.
The Moravian churches Lazarica, Ravanica, Ljubostinja and Kaleni
were a new type of church, where decorative sculpture had a signicant
place. On the portals, windows, rosettes and arches, interweaving bands
and fantastic animals, as well as human gures come one after another.
The Moravian ornament is a brand novelty and proof of the epochs crea-
tive power.
On the Morava Schools frescoes, the great Byzantine painting tradition
blazed for the last time. Manasijas and Kalenis elegant aristocratic
painting exudes lyrical atmospherics and sophistication. Divine clothes,
precious jewels, shining vessels and unusual hoods following the fashion
of that time, transformed the walls of the Moravian churches into a his-
torical document for understanding the spirit of the time which disap-
peared for good with the fall of Smederevo, in 1459, and the decline of the
Serbian medieval state.
LIFE DEVOTED TO PRAYER
AND WORK
Although mostly built in the medieval eras, the monasteries remain ac-
tive today too. Monks living there, live according to the ancient monas-
tic rule: prayer and work. That is why serenity and happiness emerging
out of the harmonious blend of the spiritual and the physical permeate
them. Also, they are distinguished by the familiar hospitality of orthodox
monasticismfromthe Holy Mountain to Russia, so they will engage you
with respect and human warmth. The fruits of monastic work vary from
spiritual, such as books, icons and prayer beads to physical goods, such
as honey, wine, medicinal teas and nice fabrics. Entering a monastery in
Serbia makes you feel as if you were stepping out fromthe race of living
in the real world and instead, stepping into tranquility which, can sym-
bolise that perhaps, eternity is not too far fromus.
Although the hills of Fruka Gora in Sremare by far known for its beauti-
ful nature and noble varieties of grapes used for producing the best qual-
ity wine, it is, rst of all, known for its monasteries, whose building start-
ed here after the Great Migration of the Serbs in 1690, when the Serbs
moved to Hungary and, exiled by the Turks, sheltered there. Fruka gora
is frequently said to be the Serbian Holy Mountain because on its slopes
there are numerous monasteries, and consequently, the spiritual centre
of exiledSerbs was establishedthere the Metropolitanate of Karlovci. In
Fruka goras monasteries, the spirituality and culture of the Serbs have
been preserved through centuries; they were also an important political
centre and were the symbol of the national resistance to the Turkish Em-
pire.
In the monasteries Kruedol, Vrdnik or Novo Hopovo (New Hopovo),
there is the evidence of a great artistic renaissance that emerged when
it crossed with the West-European culture. In Fruka Gora, the authentic
baroque style was incepted, the rst printing shops opened and Serbian
graphics were born. Very tall and decorative baroque bell-towers were
built to churches, along with baroque iconostases with big and richly
carved wooden separation walls covered with icons painted by the best
Serbian painters of that time inside them. While opening towards the Eu-
ropean culture, there was a vivid remembrance of the golden era of the
Nemanji family epoch, so, the specic style of the Serbianbaroque came
to surface in that blend of the modern and the traditional. For all that,
the seventeen preserved Fruka Goras monasteries have a great signi-
cance in Serbias cultural and historical heritage.
I m p r i n t :
N a t i o n a l T o u r i s m O r g a n i s a t i o n o f S e r b i a
8 i k a L j u b i n a S t r e e t , 1 1 0 0 0 B e l g r a d e
P h o n e : + 3 8 1 1 1 6 5 5 7 1 0 0
F a x : + 3 8 1 1 1 2 6 2 6 7 6 7
E - m a i l : o f c e @ s e r b i a . t r a v e l
w w w . s r b i j a . t r a v e l
F o r p u b l i s h e r : G o r d a n a P l a m e n a c , d i r e c t o r
E d i t o r : S m i l j a n a N o v i i
T e x t : J a s m i n a M i l o v a n o v i
T r a n s l a t i o n : S l o b o d a n R a k i
L a n g u a g e e d i t o r : R u s s e l l S t e n h o u s e
D e s i g n : M a r i j a n a M a r k o s k a
P h o t o g r a p h s : D r a g a n B o s n i , B r a n k o J o v a n o v i ,
G o r a n N i k o l i , V l a d i m i r S r e t e n o v i , D r a g o l j u b Z a m u r o v i
M a p p i n g b o a r d : M e r k u r S V
P r i n t : K o m a z e c d . o . o .
T h e r s t e d i t i o n i n E n g l i s h , 2 0 1 2
C i r c u l a t i o n : 1 0 , 0 0 0
I S B N 9 7 8 - 8 6 - 6 0 0 5 - 2 2 3 - 2
C I P -
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2 7 1 . 2 2 2 ( 4 9 7 . 1 1 ) - 5 2 3 . 4 / . 6 ( 0 8 4 . 3 )
M I L O V A N O V I , J a s m i n a , 1 9 7 2 -
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m a p / t e x t J a s m i n a M i l o v a n o v i ; t r a n s l a t i o n
S l o b o d a n R a k i . - B e o g r a d : T u r i s t i k a
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m a n a s t i r a i k r a t k e t e k s t o v e o s r p s k o j
s r e d n j e v e k o v n o j u m e t n o s t i s a f o t o g r a j a m a .
I S B N 9 7 8 - 8 6 - 6 0 0 5 - 2 2 3 - 2
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SERBIA
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The most famous Serbian fresco, White Angel of
Mileeva, was rst broadcast via satellite in 1963, as
Europes greeting for America. A little later, the same
signal was sent into space.
Sopoani

Sveta Trojica Deani Miroslavs Evangel

Peka patrijarija Manasija (Resava) Ravanica (Vrdnik)
The most famous Serbian manuscript, Miroslavs Evangel, writ-
ten at the court of Prince Miroslav, Nemanjas brother, around
1180, is decorated with luxurious miniatures, vignettes, and the
Romanic style initial letters (UNESCO, programRemembrance
of the World).
T O U R I S T I N F O R M A T I O N
a n d S O U V E N I R S H O P
i n B e l g r a d e , i k a L j u b i n a S t r e e t 8 ,
P h o n e : + 3 8 1 1 1 6 5 5 7 1 2 7 , i n f o @ s e r b i a . t r a v e l
I
If you visit ia, Studenica, Gradac, urevi Stupovi or
Sopoani, you will nd yourself on the EuropeanTransromanica
route which links Europes Romanic heritage. On that important
cultural route, which makes its promotion possible, the Serbian
monasteries are a must visit attraction owing to their original
contribution to the European cultural heritage legacy.
N A T I O N A L T O U R I S M
O R G A N I S A T I O N
o f S E R B I A
T r g
R e p u b l i k e
K
n
e
z
a
M
i h
a
i l a
Z m
a j J o v i n a
Repositories emerged at the same time with the foundation of the mon-
asteries as donators and numerous pilgrims gifted valuable artistic and
liturgical objects. Today, in the monasteries repositories china cabinets,
visitors can see the monasteries relics, evangels, chalices, gold crosses,
ecclesiastic embroidery, silver-plated icons and many other valuable ob-
jects.
Gradac
Peka
patrijarija
Sopoani
Raa
Deani
Bogorodica
Ljevika
Graanica
Banjska
Koporin
Bela crkva
Donja
Kamenica
Lazarica
Ljubostinja
Ravanica
Manasija
Nova
Pavlica
Kaleni
Vitovnica
Gornjak
Naupara
Poganovo
Joanica
Jaunjski
manastiri
Jovanja
Prohor
Pinjski
Tresije
Tronoa
Ramaa
Vojlovica
Rakovica
Draa
Gornja
Kamenica
elije
Kikinda
Mesi
Pokajnica
Jovanje
Uspenje
Petrova
crkva
Sv. Nikola
Studenica
urevi
Stupovi
Velue
Mileeva
Pribojska
banja
Pustinja
ia
Boani
Privina
Glava
Diva
Kuvedin
Mala
Remeta iatovac
Jazak
Novo
Hopovo
Grgeteg
Kruedol
Kovilj
Velika
Remeta
Staro
Hopovo
Rakovac
Vrdnik
Beoin
Petkovica
Oplenac
Vraevnica
Ilinje
Sv. Trojica
Sretenje
Vaznesenje
Nikolje
Vavedenje
Sveti
Ahilije
Blagovetenje
Preobraenje
SERBIA
MONASTERIES MAP
LEGEND
International Border
Border Crossing (land, river)
Provincial Border
Customs Checkpoint
Settlement Signs
City
County center
Rivers and Lakes
Mountains
Highway
One-lane Highway
Distances in Kilometers
Highway
Regional Road
Local Road
Railway
Airport (commercial)
Visitors Center
Monastery
UNESCO Cultural Site
Transromanica Cultural Route
E762 2-3
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m s o K aj
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HORGO
NI
BRUS
Drina
Peruako
jezero
NATIONAL TOURISM
ORGANISATION of SERBIA