Dajbabe Monastery

Dajbabe was founded in 1897 by the monk Simeon Popović, who was directed to the site by a dream and built the church into an existing cave on the hillside, so that the interior is the cave itself, irregular and low in places, with a small painted facade outside. Popović painted the frescoes himself over the following years. He was buried there in 1941 and the monastery has become a pilgrimage site. Popovic had studied at the Kyiv theological academy and the painting shows that training, worked directly onto rock walls that gave him almost no flat surface.

Background

The monastery lies in a cave on Dajbabe Hill, which rises above the Zeta valley on the edge of Podgorica, and since its founding in 1897 it has been dedicated to the Assumption of the Theotokos. At first only the cave itself served as the sanctuary, with chapels meant to be added later. The part of the church visible from outside is a spacious entrance porch with two belfries, and the monastery keeps a reliquary with the relics of St Simeon of Dajbabe, its founder.

Source: Wikipedia, "Dajbabe Monastery"

Highlights

• The cave interior - a church built into the natural rock chamber.
• The frescoes - painting done by the founding monk himself.
• The facade - the small built front on the hillside above Podgorica.
• The Simeon tomb - the burial of the founder inside the monastery.

When to go

Year round; it is open in daylight outside services. Mornings are quietest. Feast days bring pilgrims in numbers.

Practical notes

It is small and the visit takes twenty minutes. The cave interior is low and cramped in places. Dress rules apply and photography inside is restricted.

Nearby

Podgorica is north, and Lake Skadar is southwest.

Key facts