Studenica
Serbia · Raska · 550 m
Description
Studenica is the richest and largest of the Serbian Orthodox monasteries, founded around 1190 by Stefan Nemanja, the founder of the dynasty that ran medieval Serbia, who retired here as a monk and is buried in the church he built. UNESCO listed it in 1986. Two churches of white marble stand inside a circular wall in a wooded valley, and the thirteenth century frescoes in the Church of the Virgin, particularly the Crucifixion, are held to be the finest Byzantine painting in the Balkans. Monks still live here and the daily offices run.
Length of stay
Recommended length of stay: 1 to 2 days (optimal 1 day)
Travel season
Best time to visit: May – September
- Jan
- Feb
- Mar
- Apr
- May
- Jun
- Jul
- Aug
- Sep
- Oct
- Nov
- Dec
Highlights
- Studenica Monastery (UNESCO World Heritage)
- Church of the Virgin and its Crucifixion fresco
- White marble facades and their carved portals
- King's Church and its frescoes
- Monastery treasury and the reliquaries
- Daily monastic offices in the church
- Studenica river valley walk
- Zica monastery and the coronation church(Day trip)
- Sopocani monastery frescoes (UNESCO World Heritage)(Day trip)