Decani

in Decani

DEČANI Visoki Dečani is a monastery-endowment of Emperor Dušan and King Stefan Dečanski, which was built in the medieval period, on the initiative of Saint Sava. Even apart from the fact that the king of Dečan completed the construction of the temple, he very clearly declared and declared in his chrysovula that the place and construction of the monastery was started by St. Sava, but due to his death, he did not have time to complete it, so Stefan Dečanski took the task upon himself. The construction of the building was completed in 1335, while the painting of the frescoes lasted until 1348. After that, the monastery was dedicated to Spasovdan, i.e. Ascension of the Lord. Vito Kotoranin was the main builder in the construction of the temple. The monastery church itself was built in the Raš style as a five-nave structure. The entire monastery is located next to the small river Dečanska Bistrica in the valley and is located below Prokletije and southwest of Peć. The relics of King Stefan Dečanski and Jelena Dečanska rest in Dečani. According to tradition, at one point the Turks tried to turn the monastery into a mosque (in 1692), but a miracle attributed to Jelena Dečanska prevented them from doing so. Today, the monastery is protected as a cultural monument and an immovable asset of exceptional historical and cultural importance, and it is also on the UNESCO World Heritage list, along with three other SPC monasteries that exist today under the common name "Medieval Monuments in Kosovo". Dečani was added to the UNESCO list in 2004, with a note that the frescoes painted in the monastery are one of the most precious examples and highlights of the Palaeologian Renaissance in the domain of Byzantine painting, which provide a valuable insight into the everyday life of the 14th century.