ANCIENT ORTHODOX WALLS REEMERGE FROM DALMATIAN LAKE

The stone walls of the submerged Dragović Monastery, an ancient Orthodox sanctuary dating back to 1395, have once again emerged from the waters of Lake Perućac near Knin.

PHOTO: SRNA

The water level of Lake Perućac, located on the Cetina River between the Dinaric Mountains and Svilaja in Croatia, continues to drop, revealing more of the monastery’s structure.

Dragović Monastery was submerged in 1958 during the creation of the artificial reservoir and construction of a hydroelectric dam, displacing around 1,500 people and submerging homes and fertile farmland.

This monastery, located in the village of Koljane in Dalmatia, belongs to the Dalmatian Diocese of the Serbian Orthodox Church. It is one of three historical Serbian monasteries in Dalmatia, alongside the Krka and Krupa monasteries

For centuries, Dragović Monastery served as a spiritual haven for the Serbian Orthodox community in Dalmatia.

Built in the late 14th century, a few years after the Battle of Kosovo, it provided a vital connection to their religious heritage.

According to the 1859 chronicle, History of the Nativity Monastery of Dragović in the Dalmatian Orthodox Diocese, the monastery was named after Drago, who, along with his brothers, migrated from Bosnia to the Cetina region.