Page 48 - Studia Universitatis Hereditati, vol 12(2) (2024)

leum. The entire construction process was en- Sensory Experiences in Iconographic
trusted to Archbishop Danilo II. The monastery Representations
is a major Serbian Orthodox institution locat- Although the Dečani Monastery engages the
ed in a valley by the Pećka Bistrica River, situat- senses through the aroma of incense and the
ed in Kosovo and Metohija, within the Repub- chanting of priests during the liturgy and
2
lic of Serbia. The monastery’s construction was through its refined architectural and sculptur-
completed in 1335, while the fresco painting con- al artistry, the frescoes stand out as one of the
tinued until 1347-1348. The monastic church is most significant examples of Byzantine paint-
dedicated to Christ the Creator and, as a dedica- ing from the Renaissance era of the Palaiologos
tion and funerary church of the ruler, represents dynasty. The iconography of the monastery re-
a traditional dynastic order of sacred art. The flects not only historical and political contexts
wealth of Byzantine tradition is reflected in the but also theological aspects of the Old and New
48 twenty or so cycles depicted. The monumental Testament, liturgical content, and the hagiogra-
nature of the Monastery required a significant phies of the Serbian Orthodox Church as repre-
studia universitatis hereditati, letnik 12 (2024), številka 2 / volume 12 (2024), number 2
number of painters, which is also evident in the sented in the first half of the 14th century. When
stylistic inconsistencies of the artistic language we speak about senses in archaeology, ‘it is fair to
(Đurić and Babić-Đorđеvić 1997, 53). New gen- say, however, that dominant and influential ver-
erations of artists relied on the models of their sions in Western modernist archaeology relied
predecessors, striving to improve their skills and on a philosophical and social framework which
education, often finding this a challenging and consistently denigrated sensory experience, set
elusive task. Given that the opus of the monas- out the framework of the five senses common-
ly known today, constructed a distinctive hierar-
tery is exceptionally rich and includes some in- chy within the Western sensorium (lower senses:
frequent themes from the Old Testament, calen- touch, smell, taste; higher senses: vision, hear-
dar scenes, the life of the Mother of God, saints, ing), and elevated the autonomous vision to the
and others, it is clear that such an undertak- highest position. Of course, this framework is
ing was led by the theologically educated Arch- part and parcel of a Cartesian view of the world,
bishop Danilo II, advisor to the Nemanjić royal with its well-known binarism of mind/body,
house (Fig. 1). This is supported by the following mental/material, culture/nature, and male/fe-
statement: ‘In about a decade, around a thou- male, to name but a few’ (Hamilakis 2014, 2010).
sand scenes and individual figures of saints were Contemporary Western archaeology is still pri-
painted in Dečani, collected into twenty hagi- marily visual; one only needs to reflect (another
ographic and liturgical cycles and in even more visual word) on its vocabulary, but it harbours at
meaningful wholes’ (Todić and Čanak-Medić the same time a tension: a tension between this
2005, 31). The multifaceted significance of the ocular-centric tradition on the one hand and the
Dečani Monastery was internationally recog- inherently multisensory nature of both materi-
nized when it was listed as a UNESCO World al culture, and of the archaeological processes on
Heritage Site in 2004, as a cultural and histori- the other. Beyond its historical and artistic her-
cal heritage preserving a distinctive form of fres- itage, the frescoes encapsulate the political and
co painting inherited from Byzantine traditions cultural climate, blending artistic techniques
(UNESCO World Heritage Centre n.d.). with theological premises in the religious scenes
of authentic artistic expression. The sensory
2 According to Constitution of the Republic of Serbia, the
Province of Kosovo and Metohija is an integral part of the manifestations depicted in the frescoes domi-
territory of Serbia and holds a status of substantial autono- nate in accordance with theological reflections
my, notwithstanding UNESCO’s designation of the terri-
tory as “Kosovo” in its official statements. of biblical and sacramental narratives. Skilled ar-