Saint Nicetas, Banjane, Eastern Orthodox church in Gornjane, North Macedonia
Saint Nicetas is a Byzantine church with a central dome supported by four columns and combines layers of stone with red brick in its construction. The building uses a distinctive pattern of materials that was common in medieval religious architecture of this region.
The church was built around 1300 by Serbian King Milutin on the site of an earlier church. It was later given to the Chilandar Monastery on Mount Athos, becoming part of a broader network of Orthodox holy places.
The interior shows frescoes with inscriptions in Greek and Church Slavonic, reflecting the religious practices of different communities. These decorations reveal how people from various backgrounds gathered to worship in this space.
The church sits roughly 400 meters from the village of Gornjane and is accessible via the Pat do Manastir road. Most visitors arrive by car or on foot, and the path to the site is straightforward without major obstacles.
The apse wall displays intricate decorative details that show the careful craftsmanship of those who built this place. In the 1800s, painter Dimitar Krstevic added new frescoes to the dome, updating the interior with his own artistic touch.
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