16,951
edits
Changes
m
link
==History==
Founded in 1186, the Monastery of Studenica, which is dedicated to the [[Presentation of the Theotokos|Presentation of the Holy Virgin]], is the mother-church of all Serbian [[temple]]s. The first stage of work on the monastery was completed by the spring of 1196, when its founder Stefan Nemanja ([[Simeon the Myrrh-flowing|St. Simeon Nemanja]]) abandoned his throne, and became a [[monk]]. [[Simeon the Myrrh-flowing|Nemanja's]] third son St. [[Sava of Serbia|Sava]] molded Studenica into the political, cultural, and spiritual center of medieval Serbia. He founded within its walls crucial institutions such as the first organized hospital and school<ref>Teodosije, Life of St. Sava, (Belgrade: Danicic Publishing, 1860)</ref>. Studenica was continually expanded by the members of the Nemanjic dynasty. King Radoslav, grandson of the founder added an [[narthex|exonarthex]] to the church in 1235. King Milutin built a small [[chapel]] dedicated to Ss. [[Joachim and Anna|Joachim and Anna]] in 1314.
Over time other church buildings were built within the [[monastery]] complex, but they were either completely lost or remain only as a foundation trace. Church of St. [[Nicholas of Myra|Nicholas]], a small single-nave [[church]] that predated the monastery complex, remains there as well.
