STUDENICA

To the Christian mind, monasteries used to be solitary and secluded places where people devoted to solitude and tranquillity in prayer withdrew. Those were out-of-the-way habitations, such as caves and other unapproachable places.

With the Serbs, monasticism sprang up when Saint Sava, the youngest son of Stefan Nemanja and still the greatest Serbian monastic authority, went to the Holy Mountain to undergo tonsure and receive the monastic name of Sava. The Serbian monasticism was established through the monasteries of Chilandar and Studenica, the foundations of Stefan Nemanja (Saint Simeon) and Archbishop Sava (Saint Sava) respectively.

The construction of Studenica, the mother-church of all Serbian temples, took quite long time. The first-stage works were ended by the spring of 1196, when Nemanja, having relinquished his throne, underwent tonsure, took the name of Simeon and settled in his own monastery. Later, Nemanja left for Chilandar, and his son and successor to the throne Stefan the First-Crowned took over the care over Studenica. Nemanja died in Chilandar in 1208; having reconciled his brothers Stefan and Vukan, Sava translated his father’s relics to Studenica. Under Sava’s spiritual guardianship, Studenica became the political, cultural and spiritual centre of the Serbs. Sava composed a Typik (Rulebook) for the monastery, with an introduction describing the life of the sainted Simeon.

Studenica enjoyed a continual care of Nemanja’s descendants and other rulers of Serbia. Nemanja’s grandson King Radoslav built a splendid narthex in front of the Church of the Presentation in 1235. King Milutin erected a small church in 1314 and dedicated it to SS Joachim and Ann.

Since the fall of the Serbian despot-state (1459), Studenica has shared the destiny of the Serbian people. The Turks often assaulted the holy place, but the monastery managed to recover each time. A major restoration was undertaken in 1569, when the frescoes in the Church of the Presentation were repainted.

In early 17th century, an earthquake and then a fire befell the monastery. The disasters meant a loss of the historical documents and the art heritage that had for centuries accumulated there. The Studenica monks traveled to Russia to collect aid for the restoration which started in 1631. In late 17th century, during the Austro-Turkish war, Studenica was demolished by the Turkish hordes and did not recover until 1758, when another restoration was carried out. However, new troubles arose with yet another war between Austria and the Ottoman Empire. Having supported and sided with the fellow - Christians, the Studenica brethren were forced to lave their monastery, taking along the relics of the sainted Stefan the First-Crowned. In the aftermath, the Turks looted, burnt and pulled down the monastic facilities. Toward the end of the 18th century, the monastery was only partially restored. During the first Serbian Uprising (1804-1813), Studenica was exposed to new attacks and was even abandoned for a while. The monastic buildings were reconstructed in 1839, and in 1846 a new layer of frescoes was painted, yet of poor quality, so that it was removed within the 1951 conservation works.

The Virgin’s Church is a domed single-nave basilica. At its eastern end there is a three-sided apse, while an extended narthex faces west. The vestibules on the north and the south attach to the structure an appearance of an intersecting nave. In 1230s, a large exonarthex was added with two parecclesions and a cross-vault. The facades are built of slabs of white Radocelo marble; inside, the church is revetted with tufa blocks. The dome was plastered in 1975 and thus regained its original look.

Externally, the Church of the Presentation harmoniously reconciles two architectural styles: the Romanesque, prevailing in the West, and the Byzantine. The blending produced a particular building style known as Raska School.

The achievement of Studenica^,s sculpture culminates in the four portals, primarily the west one between the narthex and the exonarthex. On the north wall under the dome, there is a window made of many square panes with medallions carved on a leaden plaque that present eight fantastic animals (the symbols of the Virgin^,s virtues), as well as two rosettes denoting the Divine Eye.

It is justly supposed that the masons came to Studenica from the coastal region, perhaps Kotor where Stefan Nemanja used to have a palace. The inscription on the tympanum of the west portal is written out in pure Serbian lettering, which indicates that the artists may have been of Serbian origin.

A partially saved inscription can be seen in the ringlike part of the dome which reads: This All-Holy Temple of Our Immaculate Lady Mother of God was built by the glorious Vice-Roy and Friend to the Greek Emperor Alexis - Stefan Nemanja, who was endowed with an angelic frame as monk Simeon ... The Grand Duke Vukan in the year 1208/9, indictum 9. And myself who has served here, do name the sinful Sava. Hence, the church of the Studenica monastery was painted in the time of Prince Vukan and probably with the support of his brother Stefan the First-Crowned. The original frescoes have partly been preserved in the altar, under the dome, on the west wall and in the lower registers of the nave. The central position in the sanctuary is taken by a composition of the Mother of God with angles, below, there is Jesus Christ administering the Communion to the Apostles -the scene was partly repainted in the 16th century. The old layer also includes the Annunciation and the Presentation of Our Lord in the Temple, on the western wing of the altar screen. The most splendid representation is that of the Crucifixion, painted on blue background in 1209 - it is one of the paramount achievements in the Serbian painting art ever.

From the inscription below the representation of the Assumption of the All-Holy Virgin on the west wall, we come to know that the Studenica frescoes were repainted in 1569, in the time of Heugomenos Simeon. On the south wall, there is the founders^, composition which shows the Virgin taking Simeon/Nemanja with the church model to Jesus Christ, the Magistrate Impartial.

The narthex was painted in 1569, and those frescoes include the exquisite representation of the Last Judgment in the upper registers and the portrait of Stefan Nemanja^,s wife Ana as nun Anastasija.

The earliest fresco-painting of the Studenica monastery marks the supreme achievement of the Byzantine arts at the very beginning of the 13th century. The 15th-century frescoes were also carried out expertly and they actually meant the first restoration enterprise of that kind with the Serbs. On the basis of some elements in the painting technique, monk Longin is considered to have taken part in the undertaking, and he was one of the best Serbian painters of the time.

The frescoes in Radoslav^,s narthex and the parecclesions originate from the 1230s and display close relation to the painting style of the main church. The north chapel, dedicated to St Niccholas, contains a composition of the Hetimasia and a cycle dealing with the life of St Nicholas. In the south chapel one finds the portraits of Stefan Nemanja, Stefan the First-Crowned and the latter^,s son king Radoslav with his wife Ana. Three dignitaries of the Serbian Church were portrayed on the north wall in narthex: Sava Arsenije and Sava II (the latter was King Radoslav^,s younger brother).

The treasury

Northward from the Studenica refectory there is the 18th century monastic residence now housing and displaying, in a museum-like way, a number of the precious exhibits from the Studenica treasury. But frequent wars and plunders have considerably reduced the richest depository of the Serbian spiritual life and culture in general. Noteworthy exhibits now include: the 14th-century epitaphion of Antony of Heraclea, embroidered with gold and silver threads; the covering for the reliquary of the sainted Stefan the First-Crowned - gift from Olivera Despina, Prince Lazar’s daughter and Sultan Bajazet^,s wife; the 12th-century gold ring of King Radoslav; the reliquary for the Holy Cross made of gold-plated silver, dating back to 1628; the 1750 Triptych; numerous old manuscripts and books printed between the 15th and 18th century.

The Church of SS Joachim and Ann/King,s Church

Walking from the Virgin^,s Church to the northwest, there is the Church of SS Joachim and Ann, also named, after its founder King Milutin, King^,s Church. The inscription on the facade below the roof cornice says: In the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, I, servant to God, Stefan Uros, great-grandson to Lord Simeon and grandson to the First-Crowned King Stefan, son to the great King Uros and (myself) King of all Serbian and coastal lands, have built this temple to (celebrate) the name of the sainted righteous antecedents of Christ Joachim and Ann, in the year 1314, indictum 12, and I have contributed a Chrisovoulia to the holy church. May God Himself and my sinful self anathemize whoever changes that. Amen. The church has been built under the auspices of Archimandrite Protosinkellos Jovan.

King’s Church is constructed in the form of a compressed cross and with a dome octogonal without. It is built of stone and tufa and the facades are plastered.

Of particular value are the frescoes inside this little church which date from the second half of the 14th century; they were painted by King Milutin’s favorite artists.

The Church of St Nicholas

The ground plan of this temple is single-naved, with gables projecting upwards and a semicircular apse. It was built of stone and tufa. Its construction presumably took place simultaneously with that of the Virgin’s Church or of King Radoslav^,s narthex at the latest.

Only fragments of the original frescoes have survived: some of their features relate them to other paintings of the 12th, or possibly (but not later than) mid-13th century. The iconostasis dates back to the 17th century.

St John’s Church

Between the Church of St Nicholas and King’s Church there are the foundations of a church dedicated to St John the Baptist.

The refectory

From the Virgin^,s Church to the west, there is an old refectory, built in the time of Archbishop Sava (the 13th century). It used to have an upper floor, too. The edifice was built of rubble and fresco-painted. The interior has been rearranged of lately.

The bell-tower gate

The bell-tower on the western side of the Studenica complex was erected in the 13th century. There used to be a chapel inside the tower, and now some fragments of its frescoes can be seen there. Additional remains of fresco-painting have also been uncovered on the external part of the narthex and they splendidly represent the genealogy of the Nemanjic family. The features of this painting style obviously relate these frescoes to those in the Virgin’s Church, and the latter date back to 1208-9.