Zrze Favorites

Favorite thing: The monastery of Zrze is at about 25km west of Prilep built on flat ground surrounded by oak woodland.
The monastery complex consists of the temple dedicated to the Holy Transfiguration, the Temple of St. Peter and Paul, built somewhat later, in the 17th Century, the bell tower, the monks’ dormitory and other accessory buildings.
The remains of the former buildings show that this space was much larger in the past and included many other residential and accessory buildings.
The whole area was fortified with tall massive walls and defensive towers from which there are remains today.
Most probably, the monastery of Zrze was built some time in the 14th century by the monk by the name of German, during emperor Dusan’s time. This can be proved by a an inscription on the external wall in the south entrance into the church, which speaks of earlier history of the monastery as well, including evidence from its beginnings until the period of the Turkish invasion on these grounds.

The temple of the Holy Transfiguration is a single-nave church with a hemispheric vault and a hemispheric internal apse.
Entrance gates existed on the south and on the west side until the the porch was built in the second half of the 14th century.
The the porch was painted with frescoes at the same time. Most of the frescoes in the first zone are partially preserved. Some conservation has been done on them. During the process a larger number of compositions with various illustrations like pictures of saints and amulets were found on the south, west and north wall.