June 9, 2012

A few Monasteries of Fruska Gora Mountains


This post belongs to the series about the beautiful monasteries of the Fruska Gora (the only mount of the extended flat Vojvodina region in the National Park of Fruska Gora which is also a well know tourist destination).
This unique place lays between Novi Sad and Belgrade Airport and makes a good day trip (by car).

The links to the first 7 monasteries of the series (Velika Remeta, Novo Hapovo, Krusedol, Jazak, Beocin, Vrdnik-Ravanica and Grgeteg) are on the bottom of this post.

Here are a few others of the 15 preserved monasteries of the Fruska Gora National Park.

The Privina Glava Monastery (Манастир Привина Глава)

The monastery church is dedicated to the Council of the Holy Archangel Michael. According to the legends Privina Glava was founded by a man named Priva, in the 12th century. The monastery was named after him, so the tradition says. The legend also links the monastery to Jovan Brankovic (burried in Krusedol Monastery) and his brother, Bishop Maksim, who founded the monastery in 1496. The first documented evidence of Privina Glava is rendered by Turkish tax records of I566-67. The Monastery church is a single-dome structure with a trefoil base built between 1741 and 1760, after the model of the Novo Hopovo monastery church. The monastery residences were built on the South and partially on the East side of the church, between 1753 and 1771. The so-called zoograph icons on the old iconostasis were painted by Stanoje Popovic in 1747. The icons on the new iconostasis were painted by Andre Sartist in 1786. The murals in the central part of the church were made by Kuzman Kolaric between 1786 and 1791.




The Petkovica Monastery (Манастир Петковица)
The monastery church was dedicated to St. Petka. According to the tradition, founded by the widow of Stefan Stiljanovic (burried in Sisatovac Monastery), despotess Jelena. The monastery is first mentioned in Turkish documents of 1566-67. The church has a trefoil ground plan that has still been preserved, except for the wooden bell-tower, which was replaced in the mid-18th century. The fresco paintings, a good portion of which has been preserved, were finished in 1588. In the 18th century, the church was renovated several times, and in 1735 got a new iconostasis with a large carved cross. During World War II, the church was deserted and the icons carried off and lost forever. The iconostasis was destroyed and the cross moved to the Museum of Srem, in Sremska Mitrovica. The monastery has been partly renovated.



The Sisatovac Monastery (Манастир Шишатовац)
The monastery church is dedicated to the Birth of the Mother of God. The foundation of the monastery is ascribed to the refugee monks from the Serbian monastery of Zica who tore down the original church of St. Nicholas called Remetsko, and erected on its site a new church, which was dedicated to the Virgin, and named Sisatovac. The reliable facts illustrating the life of the monastery date from the mid-l6th century. In 1543, the relics of St. Stefan Stiljanovic were brought from Siklos to the monastery. The old two-domed church, which had been built by masters from Adriatic coast, Jovan and Gaspar, was destroyed in 1778. A new, larger one, donated by the bishop Vikentije Jovanovic-Popovic was built on its site. The monks' quarters were erected on three sides, while the fourth was closed by the church itself. The quarters acquired their present appearance at the beginning of the 19th century. The cemetery chapel was dedicated to St. Paul and St. Peter, and the chapel was built in 1750. The iconostasis and murals for the new church were made by Grigorije Davidovic-Obsic, in 1795. The monastery was destroyed during World War II. The reconstruction of the monastery is under way.



The Rakovac Monastery (Манастир Раковац)
The monastery church is dedicated to St. Cosmas and St. Damianos. According to a legend written in 1704, Rakovac is the heritage of a certain man, Raka, courtier of despot Jovan Brankovic. The legend states that Raka erected the monastery in 1498. The monastery got its name after him. The monastery was mentioned in the first Turkish census of Srem in 1546. The addition of a baroque bell-tower on to the West church facade, in 1735, entailed certain changes in the trefoil shape of the church and the whole monastery complex. The monks' quarters acquired their final appearance in 1771, surrounding the church on three sides. The church was supposed to be painted at the beginning of the 16th century. The only preserved parts of the frescos are those in the tambour of the dome. The icons on the baroque iconostasis were done by Vasilije Ostojic in 1763. The single-nave chapel in the monastery graveyard dedicated to the Shroud of the Mother of God, built in 1751, houses the iconostasis painted by Janko Halkozovic and Vasilije Ostojic, in 1755. The monastery was severely damaged in World War II and a lot of cultural, historical, and artistic valuables were irretrievably lost. The church has been reconstructed.



The Staro Hopovo Monastery (Манастир Старо Хопово)
The monastery church is dedicated to St. Pantelemon and was built in 1752. According to the tradition the monastery was founded by bishop Maksim. The first reliable data about the monastery date back to 1545/46. There are no records about Staro Hopovo from the 17th century and the first half of 18th century. According to some records before there was a church devoted to St. Nicholas, with walls made of wooden planks. Instead of that church, which was destroyed in an earthquake, the present one, dedicated to St. Pantelemon was errected. In the new, single nave domed church, the throne icons, on the baroque iconostasis, were painted by Janko Halkozovic.
During World War II, the church was damaged and the iconostasis was dismantled. The church itself underwent conservation and restoration after the World War II. The monastery is not anymore in use.

My Travel Posts about the other monasteries:
Fruska Gora Monasteries Overview 
Velika Remeta Monastery in Fruska Gora
Novo Hapovo Monastery in Fruska Gora
Krusedol Monastery in Fruska Gora 
Jazak Monastery in Fruska Gora
Beocin Monastery in Fruska Gora
Vrdnik-Ravanica Monastery in Fruska Gora
Grgetec Monastery in Fruska Gora

Picutres and texts in part from SPCO Lucern and pravoslavlje.nl

6 comments:

  1. AnonymousJune 09, 2012

    Бог те Благословио! Јако Лепо! :)

    Немања

    ReplyDelete
  2. What a cluster of precious monasteries in one area. Too bad that those icons got looted, it's a cultural crime for taking them off.
    Thanks for sharing this information.
    Sincerely,
    Mariette

    ReplyDelete
  3. Nice blog again. Very helpful.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Did brag about your outstanding blog! Check it out...
    Sincerely,
    Mariette

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks Mariette, will check it out :-)

      Delete