MONASTÈRE DE DOBRUN

This Serbian Orthodox monastery (Manastir Dobrun/Манастир Добрун) lies 12 km southeast of Višegrad. Founded in the ^14th century and rebuilt many times, it lies along the Rzav river, the road to Serbia and the "Šargan Eight" railroad line. The entrance is guarded by a 1923 Henschel locomotive and an imposing orange gate surmounted by a bell-walled chapel. In the Middle Ages, the complex was the center of a religious city of 700 monks. Centuries and invaders passed, the town disappeared and the monastery was completely destroyed by an explosion in 1945, when it was used as an ammunition depot. Since 1994, immense work has been undertaken to bring Dobrun back to life. Some medieval frescoes have been rediscovered. They are installed in the new catholicon (main church). Here we see the Serbian nobleman who created the complex around 1340: župan Pribil, accompanied by his sons Petar and Stefan, holds a miniature of the old catholicon. Another family portrait: Emperor Dušan, his wife Hélène and their son, the future Uroš V, who brought about the fall of the powerful Serbian Nemanjić dynasty in 1371. A large white konak (inn) houses two museums. One is dedicated to the Serbian revolt of 1804-1813 led by Đorđe Petrović, known as Karađorđe ("George the Black"), founder of the Karađorđević dynasty (1842-1945). The other focuses on the region's monastic history. And, on the heights, a statue of Karađorđe dominates the whole.