Privina Glava Monastery
First mentions and early history
For centuries, the monks from Privina Glava have been passing on the traditional belief that Saint Despot Jovan Branković, together with his brother, “Maksim, the Bishop of Serbia”, rebuilt their much older monastery around 1496. This sanctuary, dedicated to the Holy Archangels Michael and Gabriel, according to the same belief, was founded by the lord Priva or Priba in the 12th century, which explains the origin of its unusual name. In support of the traditional belief, the fact that Berkasovo, the fortified possession of Vuk the Fiery Dragon, was located near the monastery, as well as the priceless “Munich Serbian Psalter”, from the personal library of the Despot Đurađ Branković, was discovered in that location. The Turkish censuses from 1566–1569 mention it as a wealthy monastic family, headed by Hegumen Maksim, owning a vineyard, a “meadow of two bales of hay” and “a field of two days’ plowing”, as well as the arable land of Mustafa Dervish. In accordance with Hegumen Simeon’s wishes, the Monk Timotije copied the typikon in Privina Glava in 1607. The name of this monastery is also found in the Turkish defter from 1578.
Paisije, the Patriarch of Peć visited this monastery in 1627, where he found the above mentioned despot’s book, richly painted with miniatures. He took it to his residence, had it bound, repaired and then returned, with a handwritten note from 1629. It was stored there until the outbreak of the Ottoman–Habsburg war in 1688, when Privina Glava suffered wild devastation. A certain Austrian officer, during the robbery of a luxurious treasury, recognized the value of a skillfully illuminated manuscript and thus the work reached Bavaria, where it was later renamed the “Munich Psalter”.
Temple and the dormitory
Starting in 1699, the monastery slowly recovered, which can be concluded on the basis of data on donations and book loans. In 1702, the monastic library was enriched with a “Collection”, while four years later Privina Glava was granted a privilege. According to some sources, around that time, a school for priests was located here, as well as the workshop of Zograf Kalinik, and according to the census from 1724, the monastic community consisted of seven members, with Hegumen Aleksej as the head.
In 1741, with the blessing of Patriarch Arsenije IV, the old, dilapidated, one-nave temple, built “from bricks with mud”, was demolished and the construction of the current one was started, primarily thanks to the contributions of the wealthy citizens, Sima Vuković, Kosta Popović and Joakim Skokić from Šarengrad, Colonel Josif Monasterlija, Jefta Georgijević from Šid, Jovica Nešković from Osijek, Todor from Vukovar and Stanko Čanić, Radul Stekić and Plavša Georgijević from Bačinac. The completed church was consecrated by Metropolitan Pavle (Nenadović) in 1760. The triconchal-shaped place of worship, built of stone and brick, with a dome over octagonal columns, strongly resembles the monastery of Novo Hopovo in terms of its structure and decoration. A massive bell tower, also made of stone and brick, was attached to the temple. According to the “Description” from 1753, there was a building with seven monastic cells on the northern side of the monastery complex, a kitchen, a porch and cellars, while on the southern side there was a much smaller dormitory, in which only two monks could live comfortably. However, the very next “Description”, from 1771, provides information about the southern and eastern wing of the dormitory being raised to one floor, while the rest of the churchyard is surrounded by lower walls.
According to the inscription on the analogion, in 1791, the monastery administration employed the “icon painter” Kuzman Kolarić, a “resident of Laćarac” to decorate the “area in front of the altar”, while the temple was covered with copper sheet in the same year. Due to the unclear meaning of the term used in that text, researchers remain in doubt as to whether Kolarić executed the iconostasis, the icons on the pillars and St. John Chrysostom in the archbishop’s throne, or whether he was only the author of the works on the pews. In recent times, the prevailing opinion among experts is that the iconostasis was painted by Andrej Šaltist in 1786.
Treasury of the Monastery
The Holy Table in the temple of the Holy Archangels was built in 1803, and the monastery was completely rebuilt in 1829, when it took on the appearance depicted in Troch’s lithograph. However, according to data from 1846, Privina Glava was in a rather bad condition. By the First World War it was considered a very rich monastery, not only in terms of the size of the land holdings, but also in terms of the collected antiquities. Displayed in the treasury and tastefully furnished salons, were the scepter of the Alexandrian patriarch Joachim, made in the 17th century, portraits of Mojsije (Putnik), Vikentije (Jovanović Vidak), Arsenije IV, Josif (Putnik) and Stefan (Stratimirović), as well as an old cap made of green velvet, which was believed to have adorned the head of the legendary founder of the monastery, the Despot Jovan. The monastic library consisted of about 270 books, among which there were several manuscript scrolls, while the estate extended over 1,125 cadastral acres of forest and arable land.
Sufferings and renewals
During the Independent State of Croatia, Privina Glava was completely looted and its valuables were moved to the Museum of Arts and Crafts in Zagreb. The temple and the dormitory remained undamaged, with the exception of the analogions, which, along with a large part of the library, were burned by the teacher Vlatko Hranilović, the manager of the Ustaša youth home, located in this monastery. A major post-war renovation was carried out between 1953 and 1956, when the dilapidated roof base of the church was replaced. Due to the fortunate circumstance that the buildings here avoided the almost inevitable demolition, Hieromonk Dimitrije (Božajković) came to the monastery in 1945 and in the following year he was succeeded by Hegumen Mihailo (Lazić). Since 1948, Privina Glava has been entrusted to the care of Hegumeness Serafima and her seven-member sisterhood. Hegumen Mihailo (Dimitrijević), Hieromonk Damaskin (Petrović) and Archimandrite Sava (Petković) performed the clerical duties. Hegumen Seraphim was succeeded by his brother-in-law Nikodim (Sekulić), who managed the monastery until 1959. After that, the dignity of the hegumen was entrusted to Hieromonk Ilarion (Žegarac) until 1963, and then to hegumens Danilo (Zdravković), (until 1970) and Simon (Đačanin) – from 1971 to 1978. A significant intervention on the roof of the preserved dormitory was carried out after the Hegumeness Sofija (Dragojević) began to live in Privina Glava. In the same year, 1987, the temple of the Holy Archangels was covered with a copper sheet and its iconostasis was restored.
From 2002 to 2014, the exterior and interior of this sanctuary were completely renovated, while the modest monastery complex, under the supervision of Hegumen Gavrilo (Marić), developed to unimaginable proportions. The old, neglected buildings have been successfully reconstructed and surrounded by concrete columns. A new, western dormitory was built, with a lounge, library, large hall, rooms for visitors, the Bishop’s suite and a kitchen, which are equipped with appropriate furniture. By 2014, the temples of the Shroud of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Holy Great Martyr George at the monastic cemetery and the Eastern Friday (on the spring believed to have healing powers) were built. A special part of this unusual, very complex spatial entity is the so-called “Upper Monastery”, partially surrounded by walls and made up of dormitory, the Bishop’s suite and a temple dedicated to the Exaltation of the Holy Cross.
In this monastery, the relics of the “twelve municipal Saints” are kept, while in the church there is a copy of the icon of the Mother of God. The new monastic cemetery was established in 2003, after the burial of the nun Stefanida (Vujković). The temple of the Holy Archangels is also the burial place of Simeon Vuković and his son Jovan, who died in 1760 and 1771, as well as of Archimandrite Gavrilo Marić. Archbishop Sergije of Novorossiysk, 1935, Abbot Mihailo (Lazić), 1951, Archimandrite Sava (Petković), 1957, and Hegumeness Sofija (Dragojević), 2002, were also buried in the churchyard. The following lines are engraved on a plaque built into the wall of the Church of the Holy Archangels Michael and Gabriel:
“Here lie the bones of Dositej Popović, hegumen of Privina Glava, who died on April 1, 1864. Out of gratitude, this monument was erected by his protégé, Teofan Kosovac, hegumen of Privina Glava.”
