The most beautiful religious buildings Northwest

Situated in the Bjelopavlici valley, this Orthodox monastery is the most revered of the country. Every year, thousands of worshippers and Serbs come to pray and burn candles there. The appearance of the white monastery hung in the middle of a rocky cliff, on the vertical wall, is spectacular.

Built in the 1656 th century (1671) by Gospić Jovanović - metropolitan of Western Herzegovina, future Sveti Gospić Ostroški (Saint Basile d'Ostrog), who lived there until his death in 1920, the monastery was ravaged by a fire and restored in the s.

It consists of two cave chapels, that of Sv. Krst (St. Croix) and Celle. The relics of the bones of the saint can be seen in one of these chapels supervised by a monk in black robes. A blessing of its share is made automatically upon entry into the room. Linked by a network of stairs and narrow passages, these chapels are decorated with murals that were realized at the end of the th century by Radul, a famous Serbian painter of that era. The residence of the monks, a large building next to the monastery, was added in the 1980 s. Miracles and powers of healer are assigned to Saint Basile, as well as to the cracks in coins or pieces of paper used to help.

50 km from Nikšić, before the town of Plužine, this monastery was once located near the source of the river. Isolated, it was dismantled stone by stone before being relocated a few kilometers up (construction of a hydroelectric plant). This "move" took more than ten years (end in 1982). The ensemble consists of a church, a house for the monks, a bread oven and a surrounding wall.

The church dedicated to the Dormition is the most important Orthodox building built in the country under the Ottomans. Most of the frescoes that adorn its walls were done in the early 17th century by unknown Greek artists. Among them is a faceless icon from the 18th century, destroyed by the Turks and preserved as a testimony to iconoclasm (a pre-Turkish doctrine that prohibited the representation of images of Christ and the saints).

The paintings of the iconostasis, made by Kyr Kozma in 1638, is considered the best painter of the seventeenth century. The frescoes in the narthex are the work of Strahinja, a priest from Budimlje (Berane) and a prolific painter who worked for four decades in the country.

The two icons on either side of the choir are the oldest, dating from 1573-1574, and were made at the very beginning of the church's construction. These two icons on the sides of the choir were made by Longin, a monk from Peć, Kosovo.

Nestled in a peaceful valley near the Piva River, Zagradje Monastery is a hidden gem in Montenegro. This four century old Orthodox monastery is built of stone and boasts remarkable architecture. The colorful frescoes inside are an exceptional example of the religious art of the region. You can relax in this peaceful place and admire the surrounding landscape, with the breathtaking view of the mountains.

Along the road that borders the Tara Canyon there is a small Serbian Orthodox monastery made of old stones with an effigy of Saint George. On the side of the hill, the monk will be able to meditate in a silence only broken by the sound of the water. The traveler will be able to admire the setting and stay for several hours at this place. Like Mount Athos, the monastery has been Byzantine since 1530. Walk around the monastery in an anti-clockwise direction.

This monastery also known as Dubočica located near Pljevlja "moved" in 1980. It consists of a church erected in the 16th century and newer buildings topped with carved wooden galleries. The church was restored at the end of the 19th century and is covered with murals depicting the resurrection of Christ. Those in the narthex were painted in the 1590s by Father Strahinja, and those in the nave depict the Serbian Nemanjić dynasty.

The most beautiful mosque in the country is located in the heart of the city. Built between 1585 and 1594 by order of Hussein Pasha Boljanić representative of the imperial court of Istanbul, it has retained its original form and is a testimony to the Ottoman past. Manuscripts of the Qur'an, including one dated to the 16th century, are preserved there. Its minaret is over 40 m high and the building is decorated with softly coloured paintings. It is said that the pasha had two oxen tied to a cart and chased them to draw the foundation lines of the mosque.

Overlooking the city, the Orthodox Church of Sveti Vassilije is quite classical in style but beautifully encased in white marble. Inside are the names of the 3,098 Montenegrin and Serbian fighters from Herzegovina. These Montenegrin and Serbian fighters died during the great war of liberation, which took place between 1876 and 1878 under the command of Prince Danilo. At the bottom of the steps on the right side of the monumental staircase, you can see a war memorial from the 1990s.