The most beautiful religious buildings Kumanovo

Set on a peak 1,005 m above sea level, this Orthodox monastery (Матеички Манастир/Mateički Manastir, Manastiri i Mateçit) is one of the most precious in the country. Alas, it was severely vandalized during the Albanian uprising of 2001. Founded in 1057 by the Byzantine emperor Isaac ^I, the complex was restored by the Serbian kings Stefan Dušan and Stefan Uroš V between 1300 and 1357. Dedicated to the Dormition of the Mother of God (Успение на Пресвета Богородица/Uspenie na Presveta Bogorodica), it was a major monastic center in the ^15th century, before gradually falling into disrepair, until its revival in the 1920s. In the meantime, the lead from the roof was removed in the ^18th century to cover the Sinan Tatar Bey mosque in Kumanovo. But the most significant damage was caused by members of the KLA-M in 2001. Since then, little work has been undertaken. The annex buildings remain in ruins. As for the elegant catholicon (main church), if it seems in a correct state from the outside, it has lost most of its frescoes. Only a cycle of the Dormition of the Mother of God and the portrait of King Dušan with his wife Helena and their son Uroš V are well preserved. The church also preserves a Greek inscription about the foundation in the ^11th century. Located between the Skopska Crna Gora massif (Skopje region) and the Žegligovo valley (Kumanovo region), the monastery is in the municipality of Matejče (Mateç/Mateçi in Albanian), which has a population of about 2,900, almost all of whom are Albanian since the 2001 conflict.

This mosque (Татар Синан Бег Џамија/Tatar Sinan Beg Džamija, Xhamia e Sinan Pashës) is the oldest monument in the city. Named after the Ottoman dignitary who financed it, it was erected between 1520 and 1532. Despite several transformations, it retains its beautiful orange hues due to the stones from the valley of the Žegligovo, partly in neighboring Serbia. Today it is less used than the Great Mosque (Xhamia e Madhe), to the east, which dates from 2022, and the New Mosque (Xhamia e Re), to the southeast, built in 2020 with two minarets.

Dating from 1851, this cathedral (Соборен Срам Свети Никола) is the seat of the Kumanovo-Osogovo Eparchy of the Macedonian Orthodox Church. It was designed by Andreja Damjanov, to whom we owe the Cathedral Church of St. Panteleimon in Veles. The visit is especially worthwhile for the gallery of icons, mostly from the ^19th century, coming from churches and monasteries threatened with theft in the region. Beautiful icons by the great masters Dičo Zograf, Veno Kostov and Yosif Mazhovski.