In 1302 the Serbian King Milutin (1282-1321) built Agiou Basiliou or Hrusija by the harbour and the so-called Milutin’s Tower. In September 2013 we were able to visit this place. After ringing a bell a couple of times we were welcomed by a friendly Serbian monk who spoke English. He invited us in and showed us the church. I was allowed to shoot pictures of the frescoes inside. To my knowledge these frescoes are never published on the internet, so I am proud to show them you for the first time. First let’s have a look at the surroundings. On this screenshot you can see Agiou Basiliou directly behind the small island. On the left is the arsanas of Chilandariou and in the backgroudn you see te monastery. The Milutin’s tower lies between the monastery and Agiou Basiliou.
Agiou Basiliou seen from the South
Agiou Basiliou and the small island
The arsanas of Chilandariou
The Milutin tower seen from Agiou Basiliou
The bridge that leads to the gate, also see the plan below by Paschalis Androudis.
The door with two signs and and a rope in the right top corner, to pull the bell
Just behind the door you will see a courtyard with all kinds of materials and panels for solar energy, also see picture below
The wooden scaffoldings that hold the ruined walls
The friendly Serbian monk who showed us around and my friend Gert Jan. Here we are in the second courtyard where the scaffoldings are and on the right is the church
The Agiou Basiliou church
A drawing of the church (thanks to the Androudis study)
The right side of the iconostasis with a frescoe of Christ
The left side of the iconostasis wit a frescoe of the Panaghia with the child Jezus and an icon of Serbian king (Milutin?)
The monks explains the frescoes, also see below
Detail of the last picture: the Last Supper, Judas without the halo
The dome with the Pantocrator
Detail of the last picture
The Holy Simon and Saint Prince Lazar (thanks Alex)
And next to it: the Dormition of the Mother of God and the child Jezus
A fine detail of the last picture
Above the entrance to the church
Time to say goodbye: the doors to Agiou Basiliou from the inside
Wim, 5/8
The Holy Simon and ??
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St. Simon and St. Prince Lazar