Belgrade Showcases Dubrovnik Serb Treasures

Portrait of Aleksandar Obrenovic, Serbian King, made by Dubrovnik painter Vlaho Bukovac | Photo by Wikimedia Commons

The exhibition, which some experts describe as one of the most important cultural events of the year, comprises 250 exhibits drawn from the museum, library and archive of the Serbian Orthodox Church in Dubrovnik, Croatia.

The objects are displayed in several groups: icons, gospels, silver sacral objects, votive gifts, jewelry, silver plates, liturgical garments, documents from the archive, original manuscripts of poets, old, and rare books, and paintings by Vlah Bukovac from the mid-19^th century.

The oldest exhibited gospel dates from 1703 and was printed in Old Church Slavonic language. Another from Kiev, Ukraine, dating from 1833, is especially interesting because of its silver decoration.

Many of the displayed objects were used in a religious ceremonies, such as liturgies, funerals and weddings. Those include German Renaissance-era silver plates for collecting donations during the liturgy, and silver and gold-plated chalices from the 17^th-19^th century, as well as crosses, candelabra and others.

Most of the jewelry items on display were votive gifts of citizens and donations for the construction of the churches in Boninovo and the Blagovestenska church in Dubrovnik. The pieces of jewelry were the work of craftsmen from Venice, Trieste and Vienna, as well as from Dubrovnik.

The documents from the archive of the Orthodox Church in Dubrovnik were little known to the public until recently and include letters, contracts, a list of Orthodox families in Dubrovnik dating from 1821 and others.

Original manuscripts by the poets Ivo Vojnovic, Andro Murat and Andra Gavrilovic are exhibited along with the old and rare books printed from the 17^th to 19^th century.

Paintings by Vlah Bukovac include portraits of Serbian wealthy donors to the Church from the Boskovic and Opuic families, the mathematician and astronomer Rudjer Boskovic, and the theologian and Metropolitan Djordje Nikolajevic.

The opening on Friday, June 29, took place in the presence of guests such as the Serbian Orthodox Church Patriarch Irinej, culture minister Predrag Markovic, and the Croatian ambassador, Zeljko Kupresak.

The Bishop of Zahumlje and Hercegovina, Grigorije, the parish priest of the Svetog Blagovestenja church, Goran Spaic, Archive Director Miroslav Perisic, and the acting director of the National Library of Serbia, Dejan Ristic, were due to speak at the opening.

The exhibition is open until September 30, every day except Monday, from 10am to 6pm.