The Museum of Vuk and Dositej ( sr, Музеј Вука и Доситеја / Muzej Vuka i Dositeja) is one of the most important memorial museums in
Belgrade
Belgrade ( , ;, ; Names of European cities in different languages: B, names in other languages) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Serbia, largest city in Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers a ...
, the capital of
Serbia
Serbia (, ; Serbian language, Serbian: , , ), officially the Republic of Serbia (Serbian language, Serbian: , , ), is a landlocked country in Southeast Europe, Southeastern and Central Europe, situated at the crossroads of the Pannonian Bas ...
. Founded in 1949, it depicts the life, work and legacy of
Vuk Stefanović Karadžić (1787–1864), the reformer of the
Serbian language
Serbian (, ) is the standardized variety of the Serbo-Croatian language mainly used by Serbs. It is the official and national language of Serbia, one of the three official languages of Bosnia and Herzegovina and co-official in Montenegro and Kos ...
, and
Dositej Obradović
Dositej Obradović ( sr-Cyrl, Доситеј Обрадовић; 17 February 1739 – 7 April 1811) was a Serbian writer, biographer, diarist, philosopher, pedagogue, educational reformer, linguist, polyglot and the first minister of education ...
(1742–1811), a writer who was the country's first Minister of Education. The museum is a crucial site for understanding the revival of
Serbian culture
Serbian culture is a term that encompasses the artistic, culinary, literary, musical, political and social elements that are representative of Serbs and Serbia.
History
The Byzantine Empire had a great influence on Serbian culture as it i ...
at the time of the
First Serbian Uprising
The First Serbian Uprising ( sr, Prvi srpski ustanak, italics=yes, sr-Cyrl, Први српски устанак; tr, Birinci Sırp Ayaklanması) was an uprising of Serbs in the Sanjak of Smederevo against the Ottoman Empire from 14 February 18 ...
against the
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman Empire, * ; is an archaic version. The definite article forms and were synonymous * and el, Оθωμανική Αυτοκρατορία, Othōmanikē Avtokratoria, label=none * info page on book at Martin Luther University) ...
. Since 1979, this institution has been governed by the
National Museum of Serbia
The National Museum of Serbia ( sr, / ) is the largest and oldest museum in Belgrade, Serbia. It is located in the central zone of Belgrade on a square plot between the Republic Square, formerly Theatre Square, and three streets: Čika Ljubina ...
.
History
Established in 1949, the Museum of Vuk and Dositej is located in the
Ottoman-style building of the former
Belgrade Higher School
The University of Belgrade ( sr, / ) is a public university in Serbia. It is the oldest and largest modern university in Serbia.
Founded in 1808 as the Belgrade Higher School in revolutionary Serbia, by 1838 it merged with the Kragujevac-b ...
, the first institution in Serbia providing higher education, founded in 1808 by Serbian key figure of the
Age of Enlightenment
The Age of Enlightenment or the Enlightenment; german: Aufklärung, "Enlightenment"; it, L'Illuminismo, "Enlightenment"; pl, Oświecenie, "Enlightenment"; pt, Iluminismo, "Enlightenment"; es, La Ilustración, "Enlightenment" was an intel ...
Dositej Obradović
Dositej Obradović ( sr-Cyrl, Доситеј Обрадовић; 17 February 1739 – 7 April 1811) was a Serbian writer, biographer, diarist, philosopher, pedagogue, educational reformer, linguist, polyglot and the first minister of education ...
during his mandate as Minister of Education, and the building is now also referred to as Dositej's Lyceum.
Vuk Stefanović Karadžić was one of the first students of this institution. Subsequently, the Higher School evolved into the
University of Belgrade
The University of Belgrade ( sr, / ) is a public university in Serbia. It is the oldest and largest modern university in Serbia.
Founded in 1808 as the Belgrade Higher School in revolutionary Serbia, by 1838 it merged with the Kragujevac-b ...
. The building was raised as a residence probably for the Belgrade
Defterdar This is a list of the top officials in charge of the finances of the Ottoman Empire, called ( Turkish for bookkeepers; from the Persian , + ) between the 14th and 19th centuries and ''Maliye Naziri'' (Minister of Finance) between 19th and 20th ...
(head of the Ottoman provincial treasury). It is also believed that it used to be home to a
harem
Harem (Persian: حرمسرا ''haramsarā'', ar, حَرِيمٌ ''ḥarīm'', "a sacred inviolable place; harem; female members of the family") refers to domestic spaces that are reserved for the women of the house in a Muslim family. A hare ...
.
[Prosvetitelji u novom ruhu](_blank)
Večernje Novosti Daily Newspaper, 2005-05-23.[SEEcult.org](_blank)
Southeastern Europe Culture Portal. Retrieved 2010.
In time, city administration had several considerations regarding the future of the object. In 1939, a complete reconstruction of that part of the city was planned. As the building is located on the base line of the ''Gospodar Jevremova'' street, the suggestions were to demolish it and to straighten the street or to construct the street to bend around the building. At that time, the street was leading to the open green market of ''Jovanova pijaca''. Members of the cultural board thought that the building should be preserved, as an old Belgrade building. Members of other boards believed that the lyceum has no architectural importance and that it should be demolished. No conclusion was reached at the time, so the building survived.
Under the name
Area around Dositej's Lyceum, the neighborhood surrounding the building was placed under the state protection as the
spatial cultural-historical unit.
Architecture
![Vuk Karadzic Kriehuber cropped](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/bc/Vuk_Karadzic_Kriehuber_cropped.jpg)
Built in 1739, the structure is one of eight oldest preserved residential buildings in Belgrade today; it is fashioned after a typical
Turkish town house in
Belgrade
Belgrade ( , ;, ; Names of European cities in different languages: B, names in other languages) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Serbia, largest city in Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers a ...
. It is an important
cultural historic monument of Belgrade and Southeastern Europe. The building consists of two floors and an attic. The museum’s wooden floor construction was repaired in 2010.
[Profile at National Museum of Serbia](_blank)
website. Retrieved 2010.
Interior and contents
![Dositej Obradovic1](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/47/Dositej_Obradovic1.jpg)
The upper floor of the building is dedicated to
Vuk Stefanović Karadžić. The museum has been compiled by his daughter Mina Vukomanović. Exhibits include objects that belonged to the writer (travel bags, glasses, stilt, rod, holster, smoking accessories), various documents transferred from the
Serbian Academy of Sciences and Arts
The Serbian Academy of Sciences and Arts ( la, Academia Scientiarum et Artium Serbica, sr-Cyr, Српска академија наука и уметности, САНУ, Srpska akademija nauka i umetnosti, SANU) is a national academy and the ...
(diplomas, business cards, bills, vouchers), portraits, correspondence and a number of books from his personal library, including a copy of
John Bowring
Sir John Bowring , or Phraya Siamanukulkij Siammitrmahayot, , , group=note (17 October 1792 – 23 November 1872) was a British political economist, traveller, writer, literary translator, polyglot and the fourth Governor of Hong Kong. He was a ...
's English translation of Vuk Karadžić's poetry from 1827.
The ground floor is devoted to
Dositej Obradović
Dositej Obradović ( sr-Cyrl, Доситеј Обрадовић; 17 February 1739 – 7 April 1811) was a Serbian writer, biographer, diarist, philosopher, pedagogue, educational reformer, linguist, polyglot and the first minister of education ...
. The museum's library, some of his belongings and a large number of manuscripts are stored there.
Museums at City of Belgrade
website. Retrieved 2010. Exhibits include a copy of the plaque that commemorates Obradović's 1784 residency in London
London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
at St. Clement's Court EC4. Unfortunately, very few of his personal items are preserved, because they were destroyed in the 1813 bombing of Belgrade.
Operations
The museum holds thematic exhibits, including presentation of items not presented within the regular exhibition. Some of them are included in the outreach program all over Serbia
Serbia (, ; Serbian language, Serbian: , , ), officially the Republic of Serbia (Serbian language, Serbian: , , ), is a landlocked country in Southeast Europe, Southeastern and Central Europe, situated at the crossroads of the Pannonian Bas ...
. The museum occasionally organizes lectures, with the participation of eminent scholars, writers and historians, as well as musical and dramatic artists.
Since 1958, the museum is publishing an annual publication, entitled "Small Case", which is composed of materials and contributions of both Dositej Obradović
Dositej Obradović ( sr-Cyrl, Доситеј Обрадовић; 17 February 1739 – 7 April 1811) was a Serbian writer, biographer, diarist, philosopher, pedagogue, educational reformer, linguist, polyglot and the first minister of education ...
and Vuk Karadžić
Vuk Stefanović Karadžić ( sr-Cyrl, Вук Стефановић Караџић, ; 6 November 1787 (26 October OS)7 February 1864) was a Serbian philologist, anthropologist and linguist. He was one of the most important reformers of the moder ...
, and their followers. This specialized journal was the first publication exclusively engaged on the study of Dositej Obradović and Vuk Karadžić. Besides the "Small Case" journal, the museum is distributing other publications, such as guides, monographs and catalogs of thematic exhibits, published both in Serbian and English.
See also
* Tourism in Serbia
Tourism in Serbia is officially recognized as a primary area for economic and social growth. The hotel and catering sector accounted for approximately 2.2% of GDP in 2015. Tourism in Serbia employs some 75,000 people, about 3% of the country's wo ...
* Monuments of Culture of Exceptional Importance in Serbia
* Area around Dositej's Lyceum
References
External links
{{Authority control
Houses completed in 1739
Education in Belgrade
Cultural Monuments of Exceptional Importance (Serbia)
Architecture in Serbia
Ottoman architecture in Serbia
Museums in Belgrade
Museums established in 1949
1949 establishments in Serbia