MONASTERY OF ST. NICTAS (СВЕТИ НИКИТА МАНАСТИР)

This Orthodox monastery (Манастир Свети Никита/Manastir Sveti Nikita) houses remarkable ^14th-century frescoes. Dedicated to the holy martyr Nicetas the Goth (^4th century), it was founded in the ^12th century and restored in 1308 by the Serbian king Milutin. The catholicon (main church) has a typical Byzantine exterior decoration made of layers of stone and red brick. The interior is decorated with frescoes made in 1324 by the great Greek artists Michail Astrapas and Eftychios, whose works can be found in Greece, Serbia, Kosovo and Northern Macedonia. At the altar level stand the Fathers of the Church in adoration before the Lamb, a reminder of the sacrifice of Christ. Above, Christ in sakkos (Byzantine liturgical garment) administers the Divine Liturgy (Eucharist). The south wall contains the best preserved and most detailed elements: various saints, miracles of Christ and the Passion cycle. Part of the frescoes was restored at the end of the ^15th century by painters from Kastoria (Greek Macedonia) and the monastery of Treskavec (near Prilep) in respect of the original work. Some alterations were made to the representations of the great feasts (northern part), of Saints Peter and John the Baptist and on part of the upper area of the altar. New frescoes were made in 1846-1847 by Dičo Zografos, a great mijak painter from Debar. The latter intervened on the dome and painted the icons of the iconostasis.