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Byzantine churches and monasteries a casualty of Kosovo The following item has been supplied by the Serbian community in New South Wales. For further information contact Aleksander Pavkovic (apavkovi@laurel.ocs.mq.edu.au) or Mrs Ranka Rajanovic (rankaraj@hotmail.com). More detailed information is available through the following Web Sites:
www.decani.yunet.com/destruction.html
The province of Kosovo is home to some 1600 Byzantine medieval monuments, and it represents one of the highest concentrations of cultural and historical monuments in the world. Out of 1400 churches and monasteries, many date back to the 12th, 13th, and 14th centuries. Most of these monuments and holy shrines survived the wars fought in the region over past centuries, but are now in danger of falling victim to the current geopolitical conflict. Among the endangered medieval monasteries in Kosovo are even ones of exceptional cultural significance:
o Decani Monastery, nominated for the World Heritage List, built in 1327, its frescoes almost completely preserved and containing over 1000 individual figures and scenes representing the largest existing sources of data on Byzantine iconography. The Decani Treasury is the richest in Serbia with about 60 icons from the 14th century
o Gracanica Monastery, nominated for the World Heritage List, built in the second decade of the 14th century, belongs among the finest architectural achievements of the epoch, with paintings completed in 1321, and with an outstanding collection of icons from the 14th century
o The Patriarchate of Pecs, the complex of the Pecs' churches, built in the third part of the 13th century, with frescoes painted from 1260 onwards. An entire history of the styles of medieval wall painting can be seen on the walls of the Pecs churches
o Ljeviska Mother of God, a five-dome church built in 1306, with very damaged paintings which are considered among the most successful fresco assemblages from the time of the Byzantine dynasty of the Palaeologus, painted by master painter Astrapa from Salonika around 1310-1313, with the famous fresco of Virgin with Christ, 14th century
Between June and September 1999 over seventy monasteries and churches have been plundered and destroyed as a result of retaliatory attacks, and many more damaged. Among them are:
o The Medieval Holy Trinity Monastery, Musutiste, 14th century, looted, and completely destroyed
o St. Cosma and Damian Monastery, Zociste, 14th century, looted, vandalized, and recently destroyed
o The Dormition of Mother of God church in Musutiste, 1315, completely destroyed
o St. Archangel Gabriel's Monastery, Binac, 14th century, almost completely destroyed
o Devic Monastery of St. Joanikije, from 1440, looted and vandalized
o Holy Archangels Monastery, 14th century, in Gornje Nerodimlje, destroyed
The Serbian community is concerned at the continued destruction of these Byzantine cultural monuments and encourages anyone who wishes to join their protest to write to the Chairman of the Australian National Commission for UNESCO asking that an appeal be forwarded to the World Heritage Organization. The address is: Professor Kenneth Wiltshire AO, Chairman, Australian National Commission for UNESCO, The R.G. Building, BURTON, ACT 0221. Alternatively, comments can be emailed to Ian.Anderson@dfat.gov.au/intorgs/unesco/ attention to Professor Kenneth Wiltshire.
Report: The World of Late Antiquity: The Challenge of New Historiographies.
A conference held at Smith College, Northampton, Massachusetts, 15-17 October 1999
Richard Lim and Carole Straw are to be congratulated on the conception, planning and execution of this stellar event. Rarely have so many of the key scholars in a field been assembled under one roof and asked to reflect on the formation of their own research, the field itself and the directions in which the field is heading currently or should be advanced. With a line-up which included Glen Bowersock, Elizabeth Clark, Henry Chadwick, Timothy Barnes, Averil Cameron, John Matthews, Peter Brown, Jochen Martin, Philip Rousseau, Lellia Cracco Ruggini, Claude Lepelley, Sidney Griffith, Nina Garsoïan, Evelyne Patlagean and Robert Markus, for anyone whose research centres upon the world of late antiquity (currently defined as the fourth to seventh centuries) this was definitely a conference not to be missed.
As the weekend progressed a number of themes, observations and phenomena began to emerge. Scholars in the areas of Syriac and Armenian studies made it clear that new historiographies are a luxury applicable more in areas where the fundamentals have long been dealt with and where the contemporary political situation affords the necessary freedom in which to work. Some presentations indicated that a number of the scholars who have been so influential in the field are attached to the old historical approaches to the extent that the introduction of new approaches may be better left for the next generation. Others embraced the challenge and argued persuasively for the application of rhetorical and other analyses or demonstrated the pervasive influence of the linguistic turn. Philip Rousseau argued passionately for the current collegiality and flexibility of the field and expressed the hope that these would continue to be defining characteristics. Peter Brown made it clear that being the first to locate a new approach is less important than first listening to others who have digested such approaches in other fields and then experimenting with their application. Evelyne Patlagean and Lellia Cracco Ruggini provided significant glimpses into French and Italian scholarship in the earlier decades of this century and demonstrated, as did others who reflected on their own formation, how historical approaches are inevitably shaped by both personal interests and the concerns of the times. David Frankfurter argued that late antique studies has been overly filtered through a Christian perspective. Australian Byzantine scholarship, incidentally, scored a positive comment in John Matthews' paper.
The results by the end of the final session were mixed, with only slightly over half the papers directly addressing the topic, and many papers going over time and therefore restricting the possibility of serious reflective discussion immediately following. As a result the discussion period planned for the end of the conference was missed by many who had to leave promptly to catch planes and other forms of transport. Even so, a number of essential issues were raised, a general overview of how the field has been shaped to date was achieved, and if the discussion regarding new approaches and directions did not progress as far as one would have liked, the event certainly stimulated much discussion between scholars and graduate students as they travelled homewards. The repercussions from this significant gathering are likely to be felt throughout the field for some time to come.
Wendy Mayer, Australian Catholic University