The Church of Saint George
(The Temple of St. Great Martyr George)
Location: Knjaževac
Year of construction: 1835. ( an Immovable Cultural Heritage)
The temple of Saint Great Martyr George, or the city church of Saint George in Knjaževac, is located on a hill above the city centre, on the left bank of the Svrljiški Timok. Due to its architectural features, historical significance, and artistic value, the city church of Saint the Great Martyr George in Knjaževac was declared a cultural monument. In the gate of the church, there is also the administrative seat of the Archiepiscopal Vicarage of Knjaževac.
The church was built in 1835 on the initiative of Prince Miloš Obrenović, two years after the liberation of Gurgusovac, today’s Knjaževac, from the Turks. Prince Miloš donated part of the money for the construction of the church, he donated the bell and the Gospel, and for the construction and furnishing of the church he hired the necessary masters and icon painters. The rest of the money for the construction and furnishing of the church was donated by the residents of Gurgusovac and the surrounding villages. The stone for the construction of the church was supplied from the surrounding area, and it was recorded that stone from the ruins of the church from the 13th century from the village of Koželj was also used in the construction.
The time of construction is evidenced by an inscription in the stone above the entrance to the church, which reads:
“In 1835, this church of Gurgusovac, the temple of St. George, was built with the blessing of the pious Prince of Serbia Miloš Teodorović Obrenović, under the Orthodox Metropolitan Peter of Serbia and Bishop Dositej of Timok, for the Glory of God, and for the memory of the deities, to whom Prince Miloš dedicated this place, and also visited these regions in July 1833, when these for 20 years alienated regions of Kruševac, Paraćin, Ražanj, Aleksinac, Svrljiška-Banja, Gurgusovac, Crna Reka, Krajina, Ključ, Jadar and Rađevina , reunited with Serbia by the grace of God”.
The church was destroyed in 1876 during the war, and it was rebuilt in 1878 with the involvement of the residents of Knjaževac.
In the temple churchyard, next to the south side of the church, there is the grave of Archdeacon Sima Žikić (1878-1964), marked with a marble tombstone. There are five other tombstones in the gate, but it is not known exactly who they belonged to.
In the church treasury, in the altar, in addition to all the necessary liturgical vessels, the first antimins of the church from 1835, consecrated by Bishop Dositej Novaković, the antimins from 1877, consecrated by Bishop Evgenije from Negotin, the antimins from Balanovac from 1942, consecrated by of Bishop Emilijan as well as numerous liturgical books, among which stands out the Gospel, a gift from Prince Miloš Obrenović with a dedication from 1835.
Gallery
Architecture
This one-nave building is vaulted with a semi-circular vault and covered with a gabled roof. At the eastern end there is a spacious semicircular apse, while on the sides, north and south, there are semicircular chanters’ desks. On the west side, above the narthex, a tall belfry dominates with a clock mechanism on all four sides, finished with a baroque dome in which four bells of different sizes are placed. The architectural solution of the Knjaževac church represents romantic aspirations in Serbian architecture of the 19th century, which is reflected in the fusion of elements of Byzantine, Romanesque and Renaissance architecture.
The facade of the church is divided into two zones by a cordon wreath. Vertically, the facade is divided in regular rhythm by pilasters and colonnades, which in the upper zones carry a series of blind arcades and saddle-shaped, broken arches. On the front of the western facade, there is an icon of the patron saint of the temple on sheet metal, below which is a simple circular window – an oculus with a decorative metal rosette, and below which is a stone slab with an inscription from 1835. The same system of horizontal division was applied to the bell tower, on which there are clocks on all four sides, and below them simple window openings covered with blind arches. Special attention was paid to the manufacture of the external walls of the side chanters’ desks. Shallow decorative stone plastic is used around the entrance to the church, on arched portals and window frames.
The interior of the temple is divided into three parts: the altar area, the nave and the narthex. The spacious semi-circular apse is vaulted with a semi-calotte, as are the side, choir spaces. In the interior, the nave is divided into three traves, which is highlighted by the use of blind pilasters and arches, as well as decoratively painted zones of the walls, in accordance with the liturgical function and symbolism of the parts of the temple. In the narthex on the north side there are circular stone steps that lead to the gallery and the bell tower. On the south side there is a smaller baptistery.
The original iconostasis of the church was made by Georgije Bakalović in 1840, but it was destroyed in a fire during the war destruction in 1876-78. The icons for the new iconostasis were painted by Nikola Marković in 1878. The iconostasis was completed in 1881. It was made in the spirit of neoclassicism, although, in the solution of the highest zones of the iconostasis, the arrangement and shape of the cartouches, one can also sense the baroque heritage.
The iconostasis is made of wood and richly decorated with gilded wooden applications and marbling. It is extremely high and completely separates the altar area from the nave of the church, and reaches the very vault of the church. It is believed that Nikola Marković was assisted by Milisav Marković, a self-taught painter from Knjaževac. In addition to the usual program of the iconostasis, here we can highlight the not-so-common representation of Job on the dump (Book of Job, 2, 3-13) shown in the lowest zone of the iconostasis.
The iconostasis is divided horizontally into three zones by architrave beams. It is divided vertically into pillars with richly decorated bases and capitals. The horizontality of the altar partition is emphasized by the rhythmic alternation of protruding and retracted zones. The lowest part includes representations in medallions on the parapets: Job on the dump, Flight into Egypt, Christ and the Samaritan woman, and Beheading of Saint John the Baptist. In the zone of throne icons, there are icons of the patron saint of the temple of St. George, then the Virgin with Christ, Jesus Christ, while at the southern end, there is a representation of St. John the Baptist. On the side doors are scenes from the Gospel story The Return of the Prodigal Son and the representation of Saint Michael the Archangel, and above them Saint Peter receives the keys from the Lord and Saint Paul on the road to Damascus. The Annunciation is shown on the Royal Door, and above them is the Last Supper.
In the second zone are the icons of the Great feasts: The Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Candlemas, Nativity of Christ, Baptism, Holy Trinity, Resurrection, Ascension and Transfiguration. In the highest zone there are two groups of medallions with three figures of prophets and apostles each, while in the centre above the face of Christ not made by hand are the Virgin and St. John the Theologian next to the centrally placed Crucifix. The iconostasis is badly damaged by soot and due to inadequate treatment. The work on cleaning the iconostasis began in 2022 and was finished in 2023.
Other individual festive and kissing icons are kept in the church, among which stands out a group of small-sized tin icons, the work of an unknown painter, most likely at the end of the 19th or the beginning of the 20th century.
Most of the accompanying furniture with the original marbling from the period of the church’s renovation in 1878 has been preserved. On the south side are three thrones: the bishop’s, the ruler’s and the ktetor’s. On the bishop’s icon is the icon of Saint Sava, on the ruler’s the icon is Stephen the First Crowned, and on the ktetor’s is the icon of Saint Petka. On the north side is the throne of the Virgin Mary with the icon of the Blessed Mother of God.
The original appearance of the fresco painting of the church has not been completely preserved. On the vault above the soleas, in front of the iconostasis itself, in connection with the liturgical purpose of the space, there is a monumental composition God the Father (Sabaoth) surrounded by the Holy Immortal Powers (Dn, 7.10), on the north and south sides of which, in the lower corners, there are representations of the Evangelists with their symbols.
On the sides of the church vault, in the space of the nave between the windows, there are representations of Serbian rulers and saints, shown in a standing position. Viewed from east to west, from the south side: St. Emperor Uroš V the Weak and Prince Mihajlo Obrenović, who had already been killed during the work on the restoration of the church. On the north side, St. King Milutin and St. Jovan the Despot. The entire painting has been cleaned of soot in 2022. The nave of the church is illuminated by three crystal chandeliers.
