Zica Monastery

Zica Monastery is a 13th century Serb Orthodox monastery located on the outskirts of Kraljevo in Serbia. It was built in the memory of Stefan I - the first Serbian king, during the period 1206-1217. The monastery is connected with the Serbian people's history and religion. According to a legend, St. Sava founded the first Patriarchate on his return from his long sojourn at Mt. Athos. A golden thread is said to have led him to this site, hence giving the monastery its name, meaning cord or thread. The monastery was the seat of the Archbishop 12191253, and by tradition the coronation church of the Serbian kings, although a king could be crowned in any Serbian church, he was never considered a true king until he was anointed in Zica.

Zicas identifying feature is its red color, symbolizing as ordered by St. Sava that the Church is based on the blood of its martyrs. The architectural style of the church is copied by nearly all the 13th century churches. The turbulent historical events didn't even spared the holy place, it has been ruined several times but fortunately, many restoration works have been undertaken during the years. Three individual frescoes, reminiscent of different periods, could be found there - those painted by Constantinople painters, those of early 1240s in the towers' chapel and those of 1309-1316.

The entryway passage into the monastery grounds contains frescoes from the 14th century, with a transcription of the founding charter of the monastery which is a very important historical document. They were in much better preservation than those in the church. Although the frescoes inside the church were badly damaged during the bombing of WW II and many were completely lost, much of Serbian history can be found in the frescoes. One fresco has three doctors 2 holding surgical tools and another with medicine a testament to the modern medicine of the time, still pictured in modern medicine books. The "Dormition of Our Lady" is another significant fresco.

The monastery grounds also has a baptistery reconstructed from found fragments and a smaller church was built at the same time as the main church, with remnants of a few 14th century frescoes. Zica Monastery was d a Cultural Monument of Exceptional Importance in 1979, and it is protected by Serbia. In 2008, Zica celebrated 800 years of existence.