Monastery Holy Archangel Michael, Varoš | Prilep, Macedonia

[Srdjan Adamovic]

In the magnificent granite rock over Prilep’s Varos, St.Archangel Monastery is one of the most beautiful and most significant cultural monuments and religion centers in Macedonia.

Monastery Holy Archangel Michael, Varoš, Prilep, 12th century, renovated in the 19th century

The monastery complex consists of a church dedicated to Holy Archangel and of the monastery dormitory built at the 19th century by Prilep guilds. They are an example of the beautiful old town architecture. There is organized monk life going on in them today. A spring of holy healing water is in the monastery courtyard, dedicated to St. Mary Mother of God. The celebration day of the monastery is on the first Friday after Easter Holidays.

One thing that is important to mention about this monastery is that traces of ancient times had been found in the monastery courtyard and on the porch. Also, on the northern stone monolith column of the porch, a sign written on Cyrillic letters can be noticed. This sign, that mentions the death of Andrea, dates from 996 and is the second oldest inscription written in Cyrillic letters, the oldest one being the one carved on the tomb of Emperor Samuil’s parents. It was found in Prespa, and dates from 993.

Holy Archangel Church is a one-arc building, with a hemispheric apse on the east, and an open porch with a bell on the west side. It received its today’s appearance mostly, in 1861, when it was renovated. Presumptions are that the original church was built in the second half of the 12th Century. There are various opinions and thesis among archeologists concerning the period when the church was first raised first and the later reconstruction and furnishing..

The monastery church Holy Archangel Michael, Varoš, Prilep, 12th century, renovated in the 19th century

Remains of frescoes with portraits of archpriests and remnants of a wall with frescoes of painted portraits of emperors, have been found in the interior the temple.

Presumptions are that they, as well as the fragments of the paintings in the altar apse and the nisas in the proscomidea and the deacon’s room, date from the 12th Century. In the west part of the church, a portrait of its founder, Monk John, has been found.

A legend has been told among the people, which says that the monastery was built by King Marko and his father Volkashin. There is a poem describing the event, Volkashin and Marko:

However, because Marko built the monastery with the money that he had grasped by doing bad deeds, the monastery was cursed and fell apart. A dream came one night to the honorable woman, called Mary, in which Holy Archangel came to her, and ordered her to raise the monastery. This is why the legend says that the monastery was renovated in 1861. And people from Varos and Prilep helped Mary to rebuild the monastery.

[Contr]

9/10

[Skopje/Скопје]

9/10

[mecanico242]

9/10

[Popiel]

9/10

[Nikkodemo]

8/10

[Happy Man]

7.5/10

[Srdjan Adamovic]