Psača Monastery is an Orthodox Christian Monastery in the village of Psača,

North Macedonia North Macedonia, ; sq, Maqedonia e Veriut, (Macedonia before February 2019), officially the Republic of North Macedonia,, is a country in Southeast Europe. It gained independence in 1991 as one of the successor states of Yugoslavia. It ...

. It was built by Savastokrator Vlatko and his father Duke Paskač around 1354. The monastery, dedicated to St Nicholas the Wonderworker, lies at the end of the village of Psača, 3 km from the

Kumanovo Kumanovo ( mk, Куманово ; also known by other alternative names) is a city in North Macedonia and the seat of Kumanovo Municipality, the largest municipality in the country. Kumanovo lies above sea level and is surrounded by the K ...

–

Kriva Palanka Kriva Palanka ( mk, Крива Паланка ) is a town located in the northeastern part of North Macedonia. It has 14,558 inhabitants. The town of Kriva Palanka is the seat of Kriva Palanka Municipality which has almost 21,000 inhabitants. ...

Road, in

Rankovce Municipality Rankovce ( mk, ) is a municipality in the northeastern region of the Republic of North Macedonia. '' Rankovce'' is also the name of the town where the municipal seat is found. Rankovce Municipality is part of the Northeastern statistical region. ...

. It belongs to the diocese of Osogovo-Kumanovo of the

Macedonian Orthodox Church The Macedonian Orthodox Church – Archdiocese of Ohrid (MOC-AO; mk, Македонска православна црква – Охридска архиепископија), or simply the Macedonian Orthodox Church (MOC) or the Archdiocese o ...

History

The monastery church, the only remaining part of the original monastic complex, was erected around 1354 by

Sevastokrator ''Sebastokrator'' ( grc-byz, Σεβαστοκράτωρ, Sevastokrátor, August Ruler, ; bg, севастократор, sevastokrator; sh, sebastokrator), was a senior court title in the late Byzantine Empire. It was also used by other rulers wh ...

Vlatko and his father Grand Duke Paskač, nobles of the

Serbian Empire The Serbian Empire ( sr, / , ) was a medieval Serbian state that emerged from the Kingdom of Serbia. It was established in 1346 by Dušan the Mighty, who significantly expanded the state. Under Dušan's rule, Serbia was the major power in the ...

. In 1358, Vlatko donated his monastery to Chilandar, a Serbian monastery on Mount Athos.

Architecture

The church is in the form of an elongated cross in a square with a

narthex The narthex is an architectural element typical of early Christian and Byzantine basilicas and churches consisting of the entrance or lobby area, located at the west end of the nave, opposite the church's main altar. Traditionally the narthex ...

built at the same time. It originally had two domes (following the example of Lesnovo monastery), but the one above the nave collapsed at some point, leaving the central part of the church uncovered. In the 19th century the church was repaired but the missing dome was never rebuilt. The outer decoration is in alternate layers of bricks and stone with several double bay windows and some rustic sculpture. The original dedication of the church was inscribed in stone above the entrance but was destroyed during the

Bulgarian Bulgarian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to the country of Bulgaria * Bulgarians, a South Slavic ethnic group * Bulgarian language, a Slavic language * Bulgarian alphabet * A citizen of Bulgaria, see Demographics of Bulgaria * Bul ...

occupation of Macedonia in

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

since it mentioned Emperor Uroš and King Vukašin as Serbian rulers.

Fresco painting

The fresco decoration in Psača ranks among the best of the mid-14th century. It was executed between 1366 and 1371. On the south wall of the

we see the endowers' composition with old Paskač and his wife Ozra paired with Vlatko, holding a model of the church, and his wife Vladislava. In front of them stand their children (grandchildren) Stefan, Uroš and Uglješa, while above them is the icon of St Nicholas to whom the church and monastery were dedicated. Facing this composition the artists painted young Emperor Uroš and, on his left, his co-ruler and designated heir, King Vukašin of the Mrnjavčević family. These are the best representations of these important historical figures. Both the portraits of the rulers and those of the nobleman with their families are of great importance in studies of medieval costumes. Unfortunately, the inscriptions by the portraits were all destroyed by the

Bulgarians Bulgarians ( bg, българи, Bǎlgari, ) are a nation and South Slavic ethnic group native to Bulgaria and the rest of Southeast Europe. Etymology Bulgarians derive their ethnonym from the Bulgars. Their name is not completely unders ...

during their occupation in

. The eyes of King Vukašin and Emperor Uroš were also scratched during the same period. The depictions of saints are done in strong colors, with much attention paid to psychological portraying. There is a cycle on St Nicholas and a composition Death of

Mother of God ''Theotokos'' (Greek: ) is a title of Mary, mother of Jesus, used especially in Eastern Christianity. The usual Latin translations are ''Dei Genitrix'' or ''Deipara'' (approximately "parent (fem.) of God"). Familiar English translations ar ...

, while in the apse is the customary Communion of the Apostles with Church Fathers underneath it.Манастир на свети Никола, с. Псача, http://www.mpc.org.mk/MPC/psacha.asp Some of the frescoes were rebrushed in the 19th century.

References

External links

Monastery of St. Nicholas, Psacha
{{DEFAULTSORT:Psaca Monastery Buildings and structures completed in 1354 Rankovce Municipality Macedonian Orthodox monasteries Eastern Orthodox monasteries in North Macedonia Medieval Serbian Orthodox monasteries Serbian Empire