Eating a piece of pungent roasted lamb accompanied by juicy green salad and combined with home-made red wine is one of the great mid-spring pleasures in the Balkans. As the locals traditionally enjoy this ritual out in the open air, and namely on the green meadows that surround monasteries, the Guide to Serb Medieval Monasteries by BalkanTravellers.com helps you plan some hedonistic entertainment, adding to it an intellectual discovery.


From Jerusalem to Greece and from Kosovo to Central Serbia, the Serbs' creative energy and religious dedication between the twelfth and fifteenth centuries left behind numerous architectural treasures - churches and monasteries, some of which are now under UNESCO's protection.

Although contemporary Serbs could only regret that many of their nation's great achievements are no longer on their country's territory, the exploration of their medieval monasteries makes a nice trip through the Balkans. The route is made even more challenging by the fact that it goes through several of the least visited by travellers parts of the region.

Fine examples of the early Raška aesthetic school are featured in the monasteries of Žiča, Studenica and Sopoćani, situated in Central Serbia, south of Belgrade.

The consequently developed Serbo-Byzantine school produced remarkable edifices in modern Kosovo, most prominent examples of which are Gračanica and Dečani.

In contemporary Greece Nemanjići left traces in Mount Athos and in Meteora. And, if one can believe the medieval chronicles, at the end of thirteenth century, King Milutin built the St. Archangel Church in Jerusalem.

No kingdom in the Medieval Balkans was granted peaceful existence, and the Serbian one made no exception. Its dramatic history, involving constant wars with neighbouring states and the advancing to Europe Ottoman Empire, intricate diplomatic balancing between Rome and Byzantium, and Macbeth-style struggles within the dynasty, can be traced in each fresco preserved from those times. Expressive and heavily charged with emotions, medieval art of the Serbian kingdom tells dark stories in which there are no common people, but only survivors.

The quest for the spirit of Serbian history through the Balkans can easily turn into a somewhat depressing pilgrimage. In any other time of the year, that is. In the middle of spring, when the bright green colour of the surrounding hills and meadows contrasts with the grim interiors of the monasteries, it is a much more cheerful experience. A good company and some deftness to organise a good snack are all that is needed to make an intellectually fulfilling, but also refreshing thematic journey through the Balkans.

Serbian Monasteries in Kosovo





Medieval Monasteries in Serbia





Coming soon: Serbian Monasteries in Northern Greece (Mount Athos and Meteora)