Located in eastern Serbia, just a few kilometers from Despotovac, surrounded by large walls is the Manasija Monastery. The church is dedicated to the Holy Trinity. This temple is a monument of Serbian medieval culture. It was built from 1407 to 1418 by Stefan Lazarevic, then it was the sculptural epicenter of the state because Stefan founded the famous Resava school on this very spot.
The famous Resava School was a workshop in which works were copied and translated and lasted until the 15th and 16th centuries. The Resava school consists of monks who moved into the Manasija monastery immediately after its construction, and their works were considered reliable sources of information.
Stefan Lazarevic was not only a great cultural patron, founder of the monastery and financier of the Resava School, but also tried his hand as an author, writing “Slovo Ljubve”, i.e. “Rec o ljubavi”.
In addition to the obvious significance for Serbian medieval culture and the written word, the Manasija monastery is also important for church wall painting, i.e. fresco painting, as well as architecture.
Frescoes of the Manasija Monastery - a reflection of the artistic development in Serbia
In addition to the architecture, the Manasija monastery managed to preserve a third of the frescoes despite the turbulent history and frequent attacks by the Turks. The painting of Manasija is of inestimable beauty, and the frescoes have an authentic color and artistic style, because they were painted by the best artists of that time.
The development of the Resava school in Manasia, as well as the good economic relations with the Adriatic coast and the Apennine peninsula, gave the famous Venetian and Genoese schools the opportunity to convey new ideas, the early Renaissance, to our climate as well. Thus, the image of Manasseh is a striking feature of Western art.
This is evidenced by numerous historical records, which write about the beauty and importance of Resava painting. The frescoes in Manasija represent the peak of the artistic development of that era in Serbia. As we mentioned, only one third of the frescoes, which are mostly located in the central, i.e. the main part of the temple, have been preserved.
