Our Lady of Ljeviš
Church in Prizren, Kosovo / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Dear Wikiwand AI, let's keep it short by simply answering these key questions:
Can you list the top facts and stats about Bogorodica Ljeviška?
Summarize this article for a 10 year old
Our Lady of Ljeviš (Serbian: Богородица Љевишка, Bogorodica Ljeviška; Albanian: Kisha e Shën Premtës) is a 14th-century Serbian Orthodox church in the town of Prizren, in southern Kosovo. Since 2006, the church is part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site named Medieval Monuments in Kosovo.
Our Lady of Ljeviš | |
---|---|
42°12′41″N 20°44′09″E | |
Location | Prizren |
Country | Kosovo |
Denomination | Serbian Orthodox |
History | |
Status | Church[1][2] |
Founded | 1306–1307 |
Founder(s) | Stephen Milutin |
Dedication | Dormition of the Mother of God[3] |
Architecture | |
Functional status | Semi-active[1] |
Style | Serbo-Byzantine style[4] |
Administration | |
Diocese | Eparchy of Raška and Prizren[2] |
Part of | Medieval Monuments in Kosovo |
Criteria | Cultural: ii, iii, iv |
Reference | 724-003bis |
Inscription | 2006 (30th Session) |
Endangered | 2006– |
Official name | Crkva Bogorodice Ljeviške |
Type | Monument of Culture of Exceptional Importance |
Designated | 11 March 1948 |
Reference no. | SK 1369 |
In the beginning of the 14th century it was built during the reign of Stefan Milutin, King of Serbia, on the site of a former Byzantine church. The rebuilt church featured frescoes by Byzantine Greek painters, Michael and Eutychios Astrapas. After the Ottomans completed its annexation of the region in the 15th century, a minaret was erected and the complex was converted into a mosque. In 1912, when the Serbian army annexed Kosovo, the status of the church was restored. After World War II, under SFR Yugoslavia, it saw extensive restoration and reconstruction and functioned as a museum. The site was heavily damaged during the 2004 unrest in Kosovo and has been going through several phases of restoration since then.