Kovilj Monastery
Serbian Orthodox | |
Established | 13th century Renovated in 1705-1707 |
---|---|
Dedicated to | Saint Archangels Gabriel and Michael (26 July) |
Diocese | Bačka Eparhy Serbian Orthodox Church |
Controlled churches | 1 |
People | |
Founder(s) | Saint Sava |
Site | |
Location | Kovilj, Novi Sad, Bačka, Vojvodina, Serbia |
Coordinates | 45°12′49″N 20°02′04″E / 45.21361°N 20.03444°E |
The Kovilj Monastery (
Location
The monastery is located near Kovilj, a suburban village of Novi Sad. It is situated just south of the village at the point where the Special Natural Reserve "Koviljsko-Petrovaradinski Rit" begins, a wetland in the valley of the Danube, stretched along its left bank. The Monastery Kovilj is in the western section of Šajkaška, a historical region of south Bačka.[4]
History
Origin
In 1217, Serbian ruler,
According to tradition, to commemorate the event, Saint Sava founded the monastery in 1220, and dedicated it to the Saint Archangels
Hungarian and Austrian period
Kovilj was mentioned for the first in the Munich Serbian Psalter from the 14th century. It was mentioned as having a "joint properties" with the Privina Glava Monastery, which indicates that Kovilj was originally a metochion of Privina Glava. Later sources mention the "old wooden church", which was painted with frescoes in 1651. During the wars between the Austria and Ottoman Empire in the second half of the 17th century, the Ottomans demolished the monastery and burned the church on four occasions from 1686 to 1697. After the Treaty of Karlowitz in 1699, the surviving monks restored the old church, with the help from the other monks and people which settled in the area from the other parts of Hungary, while the monastery was renovated in 1705-1707.[1][2][3][7]
The present, stone church was built from 1741 to 1749 by the neimars (builders) Teodor Kosta and Nikola Krapić. It was built in the
The establishment of the Šajkaš Battalion in 1763, Serbian settlements surrounding the monastery were repopulated and preserved, which also influenced the prosperity of the monastery. Forerunner of the modern Serbian historiography,
Yugoslavia and Serbia
The monastery wasn't damaged during World War I. After the partial agrarian reform in the Kingdom of Yugoslavia, the estate of Kovilj was reduced, and in 1933 it became a female monastery. The Hungarian occupational forces looted the monastery in 1941, during World War II, and some artifacts are today still being exhibited in several museums in Budapest. They also expelled the nuns, which moved to the Fenek Monastery, but when Ustaše forced them out from Fenek, too, they settled in the Monastery of Saint Petka, near Paraćin, in central Serbia. After the war ended, the new Communist authorities confiscated almost the entire monastic estate.[3][7] Only two monks remained in the monastery.[9] In 1946 the monastery kept only 10 ha (25 acres), but then even this was reduced by half. The number of monks dwindled and so did the number of believers and visitors, as the state became officially atheistic.[8] As the monastery was left without its land, remaining monks began to develop monastic farming. From 1980 to 1990 there were no residing monks and, except for intermittent stays, monastery was virtually abandoned.[8][9]
In 1990, three
The monastery gained media attention due to the airing of the Bukvar pravoslavlja (the "
Characteristics
Interior
Church's iconostasis is one of the few in modern Vojvodina, not being made in the baroque manner.
Treasury
After the 1850 renovation, the monastery gathered a vast new artistic and historical collection. It includes rare and valuable books and manuscripts which are kept in a large monastic library, the paintings of Uroš Predić and Rafailo Momčilović, the collection of musical literature (assembled by Damaskin Davidović), numerous icons from the 18th and 19th centuries, the monastic archive, etc. The monastery also has spacious rooms and salons equipped with antique furniture, chandeliers, stoves, etc., but also a modern dining room and an ophthalmology cabinet.[2] There is also a tomb of Jovan Rajić and his original works can be found in his memorial museum.[3][8]
Complex
On the location of the old church, which was demolished in 1850, there is a stone marker. Also part of the complex is a small chapel dedicated to
Economy
Kovilj is known for its honey and
Other activities include production of candles and crafting of icons, which, together with numerous herbal balms, can be bought in the monastic shop.[2]
Land of the living
From the first citations of the monastery, there was a monastic school in it. In 2004, heguman Porfirije decided to change the purpose of the object and adapted it into the
See also
- List of Serb Orthodox monasteries
- Eparchy of Bačka
References
- ^ a b "Pravoslavlje - Manastir Kovilj". Archived from the original on 2011-08-24. Retrieved 2012-01-20.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j Aleksandra Mijalković (20 August 2017), "Zanimljiva Srbija - Manastir Kovilj: Za monahe dom, za zavisnike mesto nade", Politika-Magazin, No. 1038 (in Serbian), pp. 20–22
- ^ a b c d e f g h i Zoran Laličić (2010). "Pčelinjak manastira Kovilj" (in Serbian). DP Jovan Živanović, Novi Sad.
- ISBN 978-86-459-0099-2.
- ISBN 978-963-87898-4-6.
- ISBN 0-472-08260-4.
- ^ a b c d Prilog istoriji manastira Kovilja, by Petar Momirović, 1993[permanent dead link]
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j Miroslav Stefanović (18 October 2020). Увек ницао из пепела [Always rising from the ashes]. Politika-Magazin, No. 1203 (in Serbian). pp. 20–22.
- ^ a b c Место мира и спаса [Place of peace and salvation]. Politika-Magazin, No. 1268 (in Serbian). 16 January 2022. p. 27.
- ^ Discogs list for the Choir of the Monks from the Kovilj Monastery
- ^ Gordana Čanović (1 February 2019). "Специфичан иконостас у манастиру Ковиљ" [Specific iconostasis in the Kovilj Monastery]. Politika-Moja kuća (in Serbian). p. 1.
- Večernje Novosti(in Serbian), 3 March 2014
External links
- About the monastery (in Serbian)