From the city center of Trebinje, there is a 2 km road that winds up the hill Crkvina where you reach the church "Hercegovacka Gracanica" (the Gracanica of Hercegovina) a copy of the famous Gracanica Church in Kosovo and Metohija (here the post I made).
On the top of this hills there was already a christian church (probably from 6th century) in the place where now stands the new Gracanica.
The famous serbian poet Jovan Ducic (1871-1943) is burried there.
When he died on April 7, 1943 he was buried in the Serbian Orthodox monastery of Saint Sava in Libertyville, Illinois (USA). He expressed a wish in his will to be buried in his home town of Trebinje, a goal which was finally realised when he was reburied here on October 22, 2000 in the newly built church. And so the grave of Ducic is now in the krypta of the Church.
The church can be seen from any place in the town of Trebinje, and it is said to be the most beautiful sacred place in Eastern Herzegovina.
There is a marvelous view of the whole town from here (here with my son and my sister-in-law)
For the building, the Church got a very generous donation from one of the richest Diaspora Serbs: Branko Tupanjac.
A picture fron the richly decorated interior
What made me smile a little is this fresko, it shows Jovan Ducic (for whom the church was built) and Branko Tupanjac (the sponsor) handling over a church building.
The Church Complex includes an amphitheater, the Vladicin (Bishop's) home, a gallery with icons, a summer garden, a library and a belltower.
Trebinje...รจ semplicemente meravigliosa.
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