Piva Monastery
| Piva Monastery Pivski Manastir Church of Sveta Bogorodica (the Theotokos) Church of the Assumption of the Holy Mother of God | |
|---|---|
 Piva Monastery | |
| Religion | |
| Affiliation | Serbian Orthodox |
| Leadership | Herzeg Metropolitan Savatija |
| Status | Active |
| Location | |
| Location | Piva, Montenegro,Montenegro |
  Location of Pivski Manastir or Piva Monastery | |
| Geographic coordinates | 43°06′36″N18°49′07″E/ 43.11°N 18.8186°E |
| Architecture | |
| Completed | Original 1573, relocated in 1982 |
| Materials | Stone |
ThePiva Monastery(Serbian:Манaстир Пивa,romanized:Manastir Piva), also known as theChurch of Sv. Bogorodicaor theChurch of the Assumption of the Holy Mother of God,is located inPiva, Montenegronear the source of thePiva Riverin northernMontenegro.Built between 1573 and 1586, it was rebuilt in another location in 1982. It is the largestSerbian Orthodoxchurch constructed during theOttomanoccupation in the 16th and 17th centuries. Noted for itsfrescoes,the monastery's treasures also include ritual objects, rareliturgicalbooks, art, objects of precious metals and apsalmfrom theCrnojevići printing press(1493–96), which was the first in theBalkans.These are displayed in the monastery's museum.
History
[edit]Founded in 1573,[1]or 1575,[2]and completed in 1586 through the expenditures of theMetropolitan bishopofZahumlje and HerzegovinaSavatije Sokolović,[3]who later became theSerbian Orthodox patriarch,[4]the monastery is dedicated to theDormition of the Theotokos.[5]The construction workers were brothers named Gavrilo and Vukašin.[6]
Piva Monastery is included within theEparchy of Budimlja-Nikšić.In 1982, a new reservoir, created by the Piva Hydro Electric Project, required moving the monastery. Stone by stone it was moved to the village ofGoranskonearLake Mratinje.[7][8][9]
Geography
[edit]
Piva Monastery is located in the village ofPiva,just south ofGoranskoin northern Montenegro. It is accessible along theE-762 road,on the way toFoča.It lies approximately 55 kilometres (34 mi) fromNikšićand is 7 kilometres (4.3 mi) south ofPlužine.[1]
The monastery was originally located at the source of the Piva River, approximately 3 kilometres (1.9 mi) away from and 100 metres (330 ft) below the junction of the proposedMratinje Dam,ahydroelectric plant.Begun in 1969 and completed in 1982, the monastery was moved to its current position, which included the removal and replacement of over 1000 fresco fragments, covering 1,260 square metres (13,600 sq ft).[10][4][11]
Architecture and fittings
[edit]Piva is a small stone structure.[2][11]Its construction includes three naves with a taller middle nave. There is no cupola. The monastery contains archives, a library, and a treasury with 183 books and nearly 280 other items reported in 1991, including ritual objects, rareliturgicalbooks, art and objects of precious metals.[8][12]Also featured is apsalmfrom theCrnojevići printing press(1493–1496), which was the first printing press in theBalkans.[8][13]It is dated to 1494 and was discovered by chance among other papers in the library of the monastery.[14]
Much of the church was decorated by Greek painters between 1604 and 1606 and contains many frescoes.[15]However, the upper porch area was painted by a local priestStrahinja of Budimlje;this includedAkathist to the Mother of God.Other parts of the church, dating from 1626,[16]were painted byKozmawho also painted many of the icons on theiconostasis.The icons of St. George and the Dormition of the Virgin are dated to about 1638–1639.[17]The artistZograf Longinpainted the throne icons of the Mother of God, Christ and Assumption of the Mother of God.[4]Piva,MoračaandMileševamonasteries have been described as "breathtaking medieval masterpieces that store ancient writings and works of art".[18]
Conservation
[edit]The church has been provided with drainage arrangements to prevent seepage of water inside the church so that the frescoes are protected from effects of humidity. In 2008, the U.S. Embassy atPodgoricaprovided $22,200 for the reconstruction of the drainage system.[10]
See also
[edit]- List of Serbian monasteries
- Stanjevići Monastery
- Morača Monastery
- Savina Monastery
- Cetinje Monastery
- Podmaine Monastery
- Reževići Monastery
- Dajbabe Monastery
- Burčele Monastery
- Ostrog Monastery
Gallery
[edit]-
Piva Monastery main church from a distance. -
An aerial view of the Piva Monastery -
Piva River
References
[edit]- ^abAbraham, Rudolf (September 2007).The mountains of Montenegro.Cicerone Press Limited. pp. 33–.ISBN978-1-85284-506-3.Retrieved19 July2011.
- ^abOliver, Ian (2005).War & peace in the Balkans: the diplomacy of conflict in the former Yugoslavia.I.B.Tauris. pp. 30–.ISBN978-1-85043-889-2.Retrieved21 July2011.
- ^DiLellio, Anna(June 2006).The case for Kosova: passage to independence.Anthem Press. pp. 50–.ISBN978-1-84331-229-1.Retrieved21 July2011.
- ^abc"Piva Monastery".Museums Macedonia.Retrieved19 July2011.
- ^Rellie, Annalisa (22 May 2008).Montenegro, 3rd.Bradt Travel Guides. pp. 199–.ISBN978-1-84162-225-5.Retrieved19 July2011.
- ^Младен Лесковац; Александар Форишковић; Чедомир Попов (2004).Српски биографски речник.Vol. 2. Будућност. p. 570.
- ^Yugoslav review.Jugoslovenska Revija. 1 January 1986. p. 29.Retrieved19 July2011.
- ^abc"The Piva monastery".montenegro.org.Retrieved19 July2011.
- ^Turnock, David (1989).The human geography of Eastern Europe.Routledge. p.293.ISBN978-0-415-00469-5.Retrieved19 July2011.
- ^abAmbassador's Fund Helps Preserve Frescos of Piva MonasteryU.S. Embassy in Podgorica and Montenegro (2008)
- ^ab"The Piva Monastery".discover-montenegro. Archived fromthe originalon 23 June 2011.Retrieved19 July2011.
- ^Historical abstracts: Modern history abstracts, 1775–1914.American Bibliographical Center, CLIO. 1991. p. 942.Retrieved19 July2011.
- ^Frederick Bernard Singleton (1985).A short history of the Yugoslav peoples.Cambridge University Press. pp.30–.ISBN978-0-521-27485-2.Retrieved24 July2011.
- ^Review: Yugoslav magazine.1979.Retrieved19 July2011.
- ^Janićijević, Jovan (1998).The cultural treasury of Serbia.IDEA.Retrieved19 July2011.
- ^Bryer, Anthony; Ursinus, Michael (1991).Manzikert to Lepanto: the Byzantine world and the Turks 1071–1571: papers given at the Nineteenth Spring Symposium of Byzantine Studies, Birmingham, March 1985.A. M. Hakkert. p. 407.Retrieved19 July2011.
- ^Georgevich, Dragoslav; Maric, Nikola; Moravcevich, Nicholas (1977).Serbian Americans and their communities in Cleveland.Cleveland State University.Retrieved19 July2011.
- ^Clements, John (1 January 1998).Clements' encyclopedia of world governments.Political Research, inc.Retrieved19 July2011.
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