The Karpino Monastery (
Macedonian
Macedonian most often refers to someone or something from or related to Macedonia.
Macedonian(s) may specifically refer to:
People Modern
* Macedonians (ethnic group), a nation and a South Slavic ethnic group primarily associated with North M ...
: ''Карпински манастир'') is an important
Macedonian Orthodox monastery situated in the northeastern part of
North Macedonia, near the city of
Kumanovo (near village
Suvi Orah).
History
The main monastery church is dedicated to
Presentation of Virgin Mary
The Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary, known in the East as The Entry of the Most Holy Theotokos into the Temple, is a liturgical feast celebrated on November 21 by the Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, and some Anglo-Catholic Churches.
The feas ...
, it was built of crafted stone in the shape of single nave
basilica with
apse in form of
triconhos, from the 16th – 17th century. The church itself was according to myth erected in the 14th century by
Dejan.
The monastery and church has been burnt and destroyed many times, but has always been restored by the inhabitants of villages Suv Ora, Aljince, Drenak and Kanarevo.
A new layer of
fresco
Fresco (plural ''frescos'' or ''frescoes'') is a technique of mural painting executed upon freshly laid ("wet") lime plaster. Water is used as the vehicle for the dry-powder pigment to merge with the plaster, and with the setting of the plaste ...
es was added to the original when the monastery was restored in 1892, however some of the original images are still visible, including
Mary with baby
Jesus Christ and Tiron and Theodore Stratilat.
The church preserves a valuable
iconostasis
In Eastern Christianity, an iconostasis ( gr, εἰκονοστάσιον) is a wall of icons and religious paintings, separating the nave from the sanctuary in a Church (building), church. ''Iconostasis'' also refers to a portable icon stand t ...
in which there are 7 original icons (''The Great Feasts'') from 1606-1607, which were painted by Nikola Zoograf and his students.
It was the most important literary and cultural centre in the
Middle Ages for this part of the Kumanovo region. Around 300
monks worked at a time in the monastery and were engaged in copying church books and manuscripts. The monastery served as sanctuary for the first Macedonian school where priests received their education. In the late 19th century, the monks of Karpino Monastery began to form public school, teaching a smaller number of villages children to become literate.
Restoration funded by the Macedonian Institute for Protection of Monuments of Culture is taking place to repair damage sustained during
World War II.
Sazdo Vasilkov Cesmadziski: Selo Orah - Suv Ora, page. 24
/ref>
References
External links
Karpino Monastery, vicinity of Kumanovo
{{coord, 42, 11, 33.81, N, 21, 57, 49.35, E, region:MK_type:landmark, display=title
Macedonian Orthodox monasteries
Eastern Orthodox monasteries in North Macedonia
Staro Nagoričane Municipality
Osogovo
Archbishopric of Ohrid