Monastery Đurđevi stupovi
History
Đurđevi stupovi is one of the oldest Serbian monasteries, dedicated to St. George. It is located on a hill above Novi Pazar, in Stari Ras.The monastery was built by the great prefect Stefan Nemanja in the first years after the accession to the throne. Founder's inscription of Stefan Nemanja in Đurđevi Stupovi from 1170/1171. is one of the few dated monuments of that time, and represents an important testimony to the beginnings
of Serbian literacy. The monastery is included in the World Cultural Heritage and is under the protection of UNESCO. The monastery has existed for over 845 years, of which 300 years was in in ruins, and 40 years in renovations. Today, the monastery has been largely renovated. There are 4 monks and 2 novices living in the monastery.
Cultural site details
The monastery Đurđevi stupovi rises from the highest hill above Novi Pazar, which, according to historical sources, is "in the center of the Serbian land". The pillars are built in a characteristic style that represents a unique synthesis of two architectural concepts of the Middle Ages, Byzantine architecture in the East and Romanesque architecture in the West. The Church of St. George has an important place in the formation of this architecture, known as the Raška School, as a building that marks the beginning of this creative epoch in the architecture of medieval Serbia. Đurđevi Stupovi is a building with a series of architectural innovations in the construction of that time. These include characteristic towers - pillars, side vestibules, elliptical dome, irregular shape of the altar space, as well as a specific solution of the central dome space of the church. The monastery church is a single-nave building with a dome and characteristic towers - pillars, after which it got its name. The importance of the monastery is evidenced by the fact that the relics of King Dragutin, its second founder, rested in it. The frescoes of the monastery were mostly damaged, and after the Second World War, one part of them was transferred to the National Museum in Belgrade.
In front of the monastery, a small building was built, which is a museum that serves to protect and exhibit the most important fragments from the church and other buildings. Some of them have been assembled as a whole and reconstructed. Thus, the most important, western portal from the church was reconstructed with all the fragments found during the works, including the inscription about its construction.