HILANDAR TO SHINE AGAIN IN ITS FULL GLORY BY THE END OF THE YEAR

The Hilandar Monastery will shine again with its old splendor by the end of the year after the reconstruction from the fire that engulfed this sacred place two decades ago, said Milivoj Ranđić, the director of the Hilandar Monastery Foundation.

Ranđić noted that workers have been engaged for a month now, and the rough work will be completed by the end of the year. He expects that in the next year, part of the work on the interior design of the Hegumen's quarters, the last building undergoing reconstruction and the first one to burn in 2004, will remain.

"Anyone who comes to Hilandar next year will not be able to see that the monastery was engulfed in a horrific fire," said Ranđić, adding that the impression will remain that the old appearance of the sanctuary has been preserved.

He emphasized that the greatest contributors to the reconstruction of the sanctuary are the Serbian state and the Serbian people.

Ranđić recalled that the Prince of Wales, now King Charles III, had sent a message after the fire, stating that anyone who sympathizes with beauty cannot help but be affected by the suffering of Hilandar.

He denied that the current king donated one million euros to the Serbian sanctuary, but confirmed that he personally participated in and organized three charity events in Great Britain, without specifying the amount of his separate contribution.

Ranđić stressed that the Serbian sanctuary has always enjoyed the support of Russia and that there are serious associations such as "Dedication to Mount Athos," from which significant material assistance comes.

Regarding the assistance from Greece, Ranđić emphasized that the state helped as much as it could, noting that this is the main task of the Serbian state.

On the night between March 3 and 4, 2004, more than half of the buildings of the Serbian imperial lavra disappeared in flames. The most destructive fire in the history of this Serbian sanctuary destroyed and significantly damaged 5,897 square meters, or nearly 55 percent of the usable area.