Edition 23 0 September 2015

Marvelous Mosaics

UNFORGETTABLE EXPERIENCE SAUNA • JACUZZI • TURKISH BATH GARDEN MASSAGE • WINE THERAPY SPA

BOUTIQUE HOTEL

: +389 (2) 609 21 91 GARDEN SPA 4 Septemberwww.gardenspa.mk 2015•www.dmwc.org.mk PHONE UNFORGETTABLE EXPERIENCE www.dmwc.org.mk

SAUNA • JACUZZI • TURKISH BATH In this issue: Published by GARDEN MASSAGE • WINE THERAPY SPA Commemorating Liberation Struggle “Dobredojde” and Statehood Macedonia Welcome Centre Ul. Alzirska bb The period from August to October is marked by a UZ Vlado Tasevski number of dates important for 1000 Skopje the Macedonian struggle for Republic of Macedonia liberation and statehood. p.10 [email protected] One of the Top Ten Canyons in Europe Editor-in-Chief The sizeable population of Emilija Miladinova Avramcheva Skopje is lucky to have one of [email protected] the continent’s most exciting canyons on the outskirts of the city, just half an hour, ride Contributors away from the centre. p.12 Robert Alagjozovski [email protected] Marvelous Nadica Janeva Mosaics [email protected] Zaneta Gelevska-Veljanovska Macedonia has one of [email protected] the largest collections of floor mosaics. There is no Georgi Avramchev archaeological site from [email protected] the Roman or early Christian times, from Stakina Lyubov Gurjeva Cesma near Valandovo to Bargala outside Stip, which does not have this kind of decoration. p.16 [email protected] Jasmina A. Casule History of graphic design Winemaking in [email protected] Macedonia ISSN 1857- 9213 BOUTIQUE HOTEL Wine has been produced in these lands since the 13th century BC and has remained a constant feature of agricultural and social life ever since. : +389 (2) 609 21 91 GARDEN SPA p.28 www.gardenspa.mk PHONE Editorial DMWC Coffee Mornings

Embassies, international communities and organizations introduce their countries, cultures and activities. A monthly event open to everybody.

Thursday, September 10th at 11 a.m. at DMWC premises

The fist Coffee Morning of the 2015-2016 season was DMWC Welcome Coffee Morning held in conjunction with the opening of the photo exhibition “Macedonian Colours” by Zoya Naskova and Eva Hevesi at DMWC premises on September 10. We invited all expats in Macedonia – our old friends as well as newcomers – to reconnect after the season of summer holidays, enjoy the exhibition and learn about the activities of DMWC. Participants brought their traditional dishes to share.

Spanish Coffee Morning Turkish Coffee Morning Thursday, Thursday, September 24th at 11 a.m. October 8th at 11 a.m. at TCC Grand Plaza Hotel at TCC Grand Plaza Hotel “Dobredojde” Macedonia Welcome Centre in collaboration with the Embassy of the Republic of Turkey organized Turkish Coffee Morning. After the address of the Ambassador of the Republic of Turkey, H.E. Mr. Şölendil, the guests will hear

“Dobredojde” Macedonia Welcome Centre in collaboration with the Embassy of the Kingdom of Spain organized Spanish Coffee Morning on September 24th at TCC Grand Plaza Hotel. traditional Turkish Balkan songs performed by the The Ambassador of the Kingdom of Spain, children’s choir from Tefeyyüz School in Skopje, H.E. Mr. Ramón Abaroa Carranza will give view the exhibition of traditional Turkish handmade a talk on the topic “Tourism and Society in ornaments and wooden handcrafts including live Spain”. Traditional Spanish refreshments will demonstration of the crafts, and enjoy traditional be served. Turkish coffee with traditional pastries and bakery. 6 September 2015•www.dmwc.org.mk Editorial Dear DMWC Friends utumn has and resources of special interest to the brought with foreigners residing in Macedonia. We invite it beautiful all embassies interested in promoting Acolours and aromas their cultural events and other relevant of traditional information to forward brief information seasonal foods such and/or links to us. as ajvar, pindzur, Autumn is a good season for travelling lutenica, salsa, around the country. In this issue we and fruit jams invite you to visit the picturesque canyon and preserves – Matka and enjoy the mosaics at various collectively known archaeological sites before they get by Emilija Miladinova as zimnica, (from covered with sand for the winter. If you Avramcheva zima, “winter”) are interested in a wine tour with Ivana President of the stock of home- Simjanovska who has written the article on “Dobredojde” Macedonia made delicious and the history of wine growing in Macedonia, Welcome Centre colourful preserves contact us (www.macedoniaexperience. prepared by most com). families in Macedonia. Welcome to Skopje to our new friends The activities DMWC is offering to and welcome back to Skopje to all readers! its friends and a wider community are I am looking forward to another exciting as varied and colourful as Macedonian year with Dobredojde Macedonia zimnica, and if you take part in some Welcome Centre. of our trips and workshops this autumn, the good memories will last you all winter and you will come back for more. Over the past six years we have organised many tours and built a network of trained local guides. As we continue to promote the natural, historical and multicultural heritage of Macedonia, we have teamed up with Macedonia Experience to be able to offer not only group, but also individually crafted tours around the country. For further information follow “ultimate day and multi-day trips around Macedonia” link on our web site (www.dmwc.org.mk, [email protected]). We are equally dedicated to promoting intercultural exchanges in Macedonia through Coffee Mornings which are becoming ever more popular and other events. This autumn we will for the first time have Coffee Mornings organised by the Embassies of Spain and Turkey. On our web site we have opened a new section “Expat Community” with news

www.dmwc.org.mk • September 2015 7 Editorial People with Big Hearts

he event which the informal help centre, many people joining shook every in her effort and bringing clothes and food. TMacedonian Lence has remained the soul and organiser of citizen this summer the relief effort never despairing in the face of was the big influx of the enormous task. refugees who arrived The human rights expert and activist at its southern border. Suad Misini went on a hunger strike in front They were all fleeing war of the Parliament to make MPs change the and crisis torn regions inappropriate law and adopt a new one of Syria, Afghanistan enabling a more adequate reaction to the and Somalia. They refugee crisis from the state institutions. by Robert wanted to reach the His almost one month long hunger strike Alagjozovski northern European and highlighted the absurdity of the legal barriers cultural manager, Scandinavian countries to the adequate provisions for refugees and literary critic and ask there for the pointlessness of their suffering. asylum, survival and a The humanitarian activists Mersiha Smailovic new life. It was part of and Jasmin Redzepi organized major logistical the European refugee crisis, as many of operations to help the refugees. They provided them also tried to reach Europe by sea. urgent medical care and secured tonnes of Although their intention was just to pass meals and refreshments for them. They used through Macedonia on their way north, we their own cars to transport the food and paid for were moved by their Golgotha. an informal emergency care vehicle to transport They arrived unexpectedly and in such the sick. They also provided for the religious large numbers that the state institutions needs of the believers among the refugees. could not react on time, delays making the Nikola Pisarev drove up and down the disturbing images of suffering even more highway offering meals, water and any kind bitter. The state soon reorganized, made of advice and help to the migrants walking the necessary legal and logistical changes along the dangerous motorway to reach the and improved its response to the crisis. Serbian border in the north. He did that with The transitional period of a few months such ease and readiness over and over again. was marked by civic initiatives which helped Miliana Lenak, actress and independent the refugees as much as they could and cultural manager, together with a group of showed that both humanity and citizenship Czech artists ran a children’s educational art are virtues that many Macedonians possess. workshop, entertaining the most vulnerable I want to write about the deeds, almost group of people among the refugees. Their heroic efforts, of a few ordinary people and trauma and tears were at least in some civic activists which we admire deeply. periods of the day overcome by laughter First is the act of Lence Zdravkin, an ordinary and satisfaction. woman from Veles. She just happened to live These humane acts as well as actions of close to the Veles railway station which was many other people not only helped those in on the refugee’s most frequent route through need directly, but also changed the overall Macedonia. Although she is not a wealthy climate in society and helped create a more person, she opened the doors of her house to sympathetic attitude towards the refugees them, so that they could rest, bathe and eat and demanded an adequate response from in her house and courtyard. Over the period the authorities. of several months Lence’s house served as

8 September 2015•www.dmwc.org.mk Travel Destination Commemorating Liberation Struggle and Statehood

he period from August to by some of the best Macedonian and October is marked by a Yugoslav artists, sculptors and architects. number of dates important Some are in good condition and others in a for the Macedonian struggle state of disrepair due to the negligence of for liberation and statehood. the local communities or authorities. But TFrom August 2nd, the Ilinden, marking the two most significant monuments in both the day of the 1903 uprising against Prilep and Krusevo are in a perfect shape, the Ottoman rule and the day of the recently renovated and serving both the proclamation of the first modern Macedonia local communities and visitors. nation state as part of Yugoslavia in 1944, The monument in Prilep is dedicated to through 8th September when in 1991 the the first partisans who attacked the police country gained its full independence, to station and prison in the town on 11th 11th October, when the antifascist war October 1941 thus starting the uprising for the liberation of Macedonia started in which lead to the liberation of the country Prilep and Kumanovo in 1941. Monuments and creation of the Macedonian state. commemorating these crucial dates in The monument is called the Mound of the country’s history have been erected the Undefeated and is part of the Park of throughout the country. They are all of the Revolution. The monument and the a monumental scale and were created memorial complex were built in 1961. One

www.dmwc.org.mk • September 2015 9 Travel Destination

of the most famous Yugoslav architects, connected to various historical themes Bogdan Bogdanovic, is the author of the of Macedonian statehood. The memorial memorial honouring all the fighters fallen complex is divided into a series of stages in the Liberation struggle. One part of the each telling its own important story. complex consists of eight memorial urns The entrance is marked with large white and a common graveyard for the fighters. shapes of discarded broken chains standing The urns reminiscent of ancient vases for the Macedonian liberation from all the with ashes are carved of marble. Eternal oppressors throughout history. The next flame burns in the ninth and biggest urn. stop along the visitor’s path is a circular The other part of the complex houses a area paved with cobblestones called the crypt with the remains of over 460 fallen Crypt. Vertical concrete walls shape the freedom fighters, whose names are space with metal-tipped horizontal cones inscribed on marble slabs. The landscape resembling the famous cherry cannon that is decorated with high pine trees and low was made by the 1903 fighters. Each metal evergreens. The mound has a semicircular top is labelled with a name of a person, shape, and the entire inner vertical surface family or place important in the history is tiled with white marble slabs. The Park of the liberation struggle. The names are of the Revolution was declared a cultural left without any explanation. Only dates heritage site in 1989. are attached to some of them. Abstract and Ilinden Monument in Krusevo was minimalistic, this part fits in with the overall opened on August 2nd 1974 marking the 30th modernistic vision of the monument. anniversary of the Antifascist Assembly in After the claustrophobic Crypt the next 1944 and 71 years since the 1903 uprising. stage of the monument is a plateau called It was designed by the artists Jordan and Amphitheatre. The whole complex lies Iskra Grabuloski and spans the area of 12 at 1320 meters above sea level offering hectares. The monument is also known as spectacular views in all directions. The Makedonium by the name of the company amphitheatre is actually a brightly coloured that executed the artistic vision. The mosaic of ceramic walls representing the futuristic shape of the memorial however small squad of Krusevo defenders who reveals many symbolic layers lucidly bravely faced the numerous detachments

10 September 2015•www.dmwc.org.mk Travel Destination of the Ottoman army. This mosaic looking like a fictional space craft, in construction was designed by the artist which all museum style exhibits are Petar Mazev. The tiles form peculiar arranged discretely. The display consists geometrical shapes, squares and triangles of a selection of traditional Macedonian in vivid colours – green, blue, yellow, costumes, Ottoman officers’ uniforms and purple and red. They are part of the overall a series of painted portraits of resistance poetics of the artist but yet, for the time fighters on easels. The memorial cradles constructed they seemed very progressive the grave of Nikola Karev, the leader of and innovative, even futuristic. Concrete the uprising. Abstract but very expressive chairs are arranged at a lower level making reliefs symbolize different periods of this space suitable for all kinds of open air Macedonian history. The stained glass public events. signifying the four seasons, but also the The white Dome built above the four stages of the country’s history – Amphitheatre dominates the plateau. It is Antiquity, Middle Ages, Liberation Struggle, roundish in shape with oval windows and and Foundation of the Independent State completely futuristic if not science fiction – was designed by the country’s biggest inspired in its appearance. There are muralist, Borko Lazeski. Eternal flame three sets of four oval windows giving the burns in the centre of the floor. There is object a strange symmetry. The biggest a glowing floor installation in the shape four horizontal nodules end in glass of the Macedonian flag. The most recent windows facing four places around the addition to the monument is the bust of area important for the Krusevo uprising. the famous singer from Krusevo Tose Another set ends with stained glass Proeski. windows. The highest set of nodules is The Memorial House of Tose Proevski directed up towards the sky. The entrance and the town cemetery with the tombs doors are made of wood in the shape of of many famous persons lie nearby. This the letter M which stands for Macedonia. memorial area is not to be missed on any The monument has a spacious interior tour of Krusevo.

www.dmwc.org.mk • September 2015 11 Travel Destination One of the Top Ten Canyons in Europe

he sizeable population of But it is not only for the cooling effect Skopje is lucky to have one of that the Matka Canyon is so popular. the continent’s most exciting It boasts 1,000 plant species, twenty canyons on the outskirts of the per cent of which are endemic, as well city, just half an hour, ride away as various butterfly species not found Tfrom the centre. It is ideal for recreational anywhere else in Europe. The canyon is activities, and its high wet walls create also home to vultures and, occasionally, an “air conditioning” effect, which is bald eagles which are protected by law to especially valued in the traditionally hot save them from extinction. and dry summers when the concrete The lake is artificial and was created jungle of the capital becomes unbearably when the Treska River was dammed hot. The place is also popular with the kids before the Second World War. The river from the surrounding villages who usually bed used to be some thirty meters below swim and jump in the lake from the rocks the actual lake level, making the cliffs never failing to attract the attention of of the canyon even more narrow and other visitors. vertical. The alpinists adore the cliffs near

12 September 2015•www.dmwc.org.mk Travel Destination the dam and hikers can be seen all around George and Holy Trinity. On the road to the lake. Sometimes special police forces the highest point of the canyon opposite have to intervene to save hikers trapped St. Andrew’s shore are the ruins of the among inaccessible rocks. There are many Sveta Nedela (Holy Sunday) monastery routes of different difficulty, while the with a spectacular view over the lake. St.

most comfortable one follows the edges Nikola Sisevski lies in the vicinity of the of the lake for at least six kilometres Sisevo village and is easily spotted from inside the canyon. There are regular small the road. It has a beautiful architecture boat tours that take visitors deep into the and painted exterior walls. Deep inside canyon. The lake ducks, wild hogs, rabbits the lake the remains of the flooded village and other forest animals can often be of Kozarevo hide the traces of St. John’s seen during the ride. The restaurants offer Monastery where healing waters used to excellent dishes of national cuisine, and flow. occasionally during the hunting season There are around ten caves in the exclusive game dishes. canyon. The shortest is just 20 meters Before it was turned into an artificial lake, long, while Vrelo Cave is considered to be Matka was home to over 36 monasteries. one of the longest in the world. There are Today one of the best preserved two huge pits 35 metres deep each, which monasteries is the one dedicated to the are a real challenge for the alpinists. Holy Virgin located just before the row Just before the dam, there are several of cave restaurants. Another one is the kayak tracks where professional athletes monastery devoted to St. Andrew lying regularly practice this popular sport. right on today’s lake shore and built by National and international competitions one of the brothers of the legendary King are often organized there too. Marko, Andrew. It had valuable frescoes So Matka is a must visit destination, and by John the Metropolitan, who had also its numerous fans were not at all surprised painted the Prilep Monastery of King when one of the most respectable Volkasin, the father of Marko and Andrew. international newspapers, The Guardian, Just above St. Andrew there is a complex placed it among the top ten European of three monasteries: Holy Salvation, St. canyons.

www.dmwc.org.mk • September 2015 13 Nature How Deep is Vrelo Cave?

t’s a poorly known fact about Vrelo is a system of two caves, one Macedonia that its small territory above and one under the water, and a hides more than 340 caves. They lake which is 30 meters long and about are of different sizes, shapes and four meters wide. What attracts the origins. Although some have been attention of the world-famous divers and Icovered by the international media, their the global media reporters is the unknown beauty and splendour are hardly known depth of the submerged cave. The bravest and not popularized enough, and their estimates say it may be well over 500 touristic potential is yet to be unlocked. meters, which would make it the world’s It is Vrelo Cave in the Matka Canyon deepest underwater cave. Over the recent near Skopje that has been raising the years different teams of international adrenalin and making the world news in divers and speleologists together with the the recent years. It has created a hype local club have explored the subterrain. that might grow into a greater attention Each diving team reported the feeling to speleology and the emergence of cave that the cave is much deeper than they visiting as new brand of tourism in the had expected. No one has felt or seen country. the bottom while diving as deep as they

14 September 2015•www.dmwc.org.mk Nature

can. The registered depth of 212 meters Cone. Crystal clear white twin six meters makes it the fifth deepest in the world, the high columns cause special admiration. second in Europe and the deepest in the The lakes Small and Big lie in the depth Balkans. This measurement is a result of of the cave. The Russian beech growing in the 2012 expedition that also discovered a the cave is believed to have been brought gallery at the depth of 165 meters. there by the Russian pilots employed in The current target for the divers is Macedonian aviation crews who used to 300 meters. If this depth is reached, the bathe in the cave. The Small Lake has a cave will be ranked the deepest in the form of an eight and is half the size of world. The current official deepest cave the Big Lake which is 35 meters long, 15 is Boesmansgat Cave in South Africa meters wide and around 18 meters deep. with 282 meters reached in 1996 by the There is even a gallery in the cave which diver Nuno Gomes. The world famous is called Concert Hall. On the left side scuba divers who explored Vrelo, such there are the so-called “written rocks” as the Italian Luigi Casatti or the Belgian which need to be explored and possibly Mark Vandermuelen, did not hide their deciphered as at first glance they look like admiration. Casatti told the media that a system of signs. The bats flying around Vrelo is magnificent and the most beautiful in big numbers are the ordinary residents cave in the region. of the cave. Speleologists analyzing the Vrelo’s entrance is about 1.5 km from stalactites suppose that the cave was not the Matka Dam. It can be reached by always filled with water. They believe the the lake boats which can be hired near cave was submerged after the building of St. Andrews Church. The boat ride takes the dam on the river in 1936. around 20 minutes. There is a special The cave was nominated for the Seven platform for the boats, but the cave Wonders of the World competition and entrance that is around 7 meters above made it to the semi-finals. It is part of the the lake level has to be reached on foot. over 5000 hectares of the Matka Lake and There is a ground section above the Canyon with high vertical rocks attractive cave entrance, called Suva, which has to alpinists and many endemic species stalactites and stalagmites. One of the of plants, butterflies and vultures, which most precious elements of the cave is the make it a prime tourist and adventurers’ three meter high stalagmite called Pine destination.

www.dmwc.org.mk • September 2015 15 Travel Destination Marvelous Mosaics

acedonia has one of the stones, with a history going back to the largest collections of 8th century BC. The earliest mosaics floor mosaics. There is were found at Gordium in Phrygia in Asia no archaeological site Minor. Ancient Greeks and Macedonians from the Roman or early raised the pebble technique to an art form MChristian times, from Stakina Cesma near and created beautiful large and complex Valandovo to Bargala outside Stip, which compositions with precise geometric does not have this kind of decoration. The patterns and detailed scenes featuring most impressive mosaics are to be found people and animals. The mosaics in Pella in the three major towns from the late Roman times: Ohrid (Lichnidos), Stobi and Heraclea. Their mosaics are regarded as prime cultural heritage to the extent that the mosaic peacock from Stobi decorates the ten denar banknote and coin, while the representation of the leopard under pomegranate tree from Heraclea is on the averse of the 5,000 MKD note. Mosaic is an ancient art of creating images by putting together tessera, small

16 September 2015•www.dmwc.org.mk Travel Destination and Vergina in Macedonia are the earliest many areas. mosaics found on the European soil. Heraclea Lyncestis was founded by the Mosaic as a form of art spread through the Philip II of Macedon, but it developed Macedonian Empire with the conquests of under the Romans who laid through Alexander the Great. Stunning mosaics the town the important Via Ignatia road have been discovered in Alexandria in connecting the Aegean and Adriatic Seas. Egypt, Antioch in Syria, Pergamon in With the conversion to Christianity the Turkey, and even in Bactria in modern town became an important episcopal Afghanistan. Mosaics later spread to Italy centre with Great Basilica. The Basilica especially after the Romans conquered mosaics are some of the most famous. Pella, Alexandria, Antioch, and Pergamon. They go back to the sixth century and The Ancient people valued mosaics as decorate the porch and the narthex. They a form of floor covering for dining rooms are detailed in design, rich in colours and banqueting halls of rich residences and have complex composition. There and palaces for their practical and at the are scenes of earthly paradise abundant same time decorative qualities. In the with flowers and birds, animals and trees, Hellenistic times the eastern workshops fish and fruit. A bull flicks its tail lunging influenced the western part of the towards a pouncing lion. A leopard tucks Mediterranean basin. The same thing hungrily into a fallen deer, slobbering happened a short while later when the blood onto its prostrate victim, birds rise western part of the Mediterranean itself in panic over head and a red hunting dog entered a period of great development. strains to break away from its leash. The The Romans decorated floors and walls designs are lifelike, full of movement and of houses, temples and baths with tension. mosaics. Many stunning Roman mosaics Stobi also played an important role in have been discovered at Pompeii, where the Roman Empire as a crossroads of they were perfectly preserved thanks trade routes and minted its own money. to the volcanic eruption of Mt. Vesuvius Mosaics are present in Christian basilicas, in the first century AD. In the Byzantine Jewish synagogue, grand houses, baths Period, the mosaic reached new levels, and palaces of the wealthy people like and we find not just floors and walls but also vaults and facades of churches and palaces decorated in this technique. The growing demand for mosaics for building and decorating churches provided ever more commissions for several mosaic workshops and led to their proliferation in

www.dmwc.org.mk • September 2015 17 Travel Destination

sectile, a combination of pebbles, in the other rooms. The Great Basilica is covered with geometric and floral designs of great artistry but also with birds, trees, bushes and animals – a red dog as a symbol of paradise and other beasts as the domain of the earth. In the Small Basilica Macedonian conservators tested a new technique of preserving mosaics with a free-standing steel construction that carries the mosaic in situ protecting it from the destructive influences of the atmosphere and the capillary waters. This technique does not disturb older architectural structures which were discovered under the mosaic floor. All the basilicas were built on older foundations and mosaics with Christian themes replaced older decorations. The most common figural mosaics subject in Macedonia and all the neighbouring regions is deer drinking from a water jug, a scene which is assumed to be a representation of the fountain of life from Psalm 42, part of the baptismal liturgy. These mosaics are often appropriately located in baptisteries and associated rooms. Two examples stand out due to their quality and complexity. The mosaic in the baptistery of the Ohrid four-apse church in Plaosnik has various images of the fountain of life combined with personifications of the rivers of paradise. Another singular example is the central motif of the narthex mosaic in the Great Basilica at Heraclea Lyncestis featuring a vessel with vines set on acanthus leaves and flanked by a stag and a doe, as Policharmosius and Peristerius. The well as a pair of peacocks. The variety designs included the urn, deer, the of compositions and the use of different trademark peacock in almost intact materials, including glass, suggest that baptistery, pomegranates and different there existed different workshops. The patterns. The mosaic workshop in Stobi workshop centred at Stobi is assumed to was so developed that it used two different have influenced the mosaics in the apse techniques for the covering of the floors of a chapel at Plaosnik in Ohrid, and in in the so-called Small Basilica. They used the monumental Episcopal Residence opus tessellatum with specially cut at Heraclea as well as a fountain of life cubes of stone for the baptistery and opus mosaic in Edessa in northern Greece.

18 September 2015•www.dmwc.org.mk Recommendations DMWC Recommends In this issue we introduce a new section: a yellow-pages-type directory of services which we can recommend to our readers. Please feel free to share your experiences and opinions with us via the web site http// www.dmwc.org.mk/contact. We will be in touch with the providers of all the published ads and will share your feedback with them.

Timeless heritage mosaic art: Jasmina Bosevska e-mail: [email protected] mob.070 786 872

ZANI artist www.zani.com.mk

www.dmwc.org.mk • September 2015 19 History A Forgotten Ottoman Jewel

nybody drinking coffee in the Ottoman Empire, it is a mosque built on centre of Stip, the informal the foundation of the old Christian church capital of the eastern part devoted to St. Elijah. of Macedonia, or walking Stip was an important regional centre along the quay of the in the time of the Ottomans. After they smallA but powerful river Otinja, cannot took over the city in 1395 it became a but notice the beautiful although partly nahiye, a separate administrative unit derelict building overlooking the town as part of the Kyustendil sanjak (a from the nearby hill. The first gaze would larger administrative division). In the 15th not instantly tell one if it is a church or a century, after the Jews were expelled from mosque, or even a bedesten or hamam. Spain and Portugal, many families finding Actually, as it happened frequently in the refuge in the Ottoman Empire settled in

20 September 2015•www.dmwc.org.mk History

Stip. A document from 1519 reports 38 Jewish families or 200 people. In 1620 the town is also mentioned as an Episcopal seat, which leads to the conclusion that people from all dominant religions lived in the town and were adequately served by the right to freely exercise their faith. The census from the same period counted around 3000 inhabitants, with 200 Muslim and over 300 Christian families. The famous travel writer Evliya Celebi described Stip in 1661 as a kadiluk, which means an area with its own judge, “with guarded fortress on a hill, mosques, baths and caravan-sarays next to a small river.” The town population grew to over 20 000 people by 1899. According to some sources, the older church of St. Elijah was built in 1381 by the Ottoman vassal Konstantin Dejanovic and turned into It has an octagonal tambour supported a mosque only in the 17th century. But by pendentives and is covered with lead. according to art historians, the mosque A specific feature distinguishing it from can be dated back to the 16th century with other similar structures in Macedonia is the certainty. Property registers (defter-s in heptagonal part with a shallow vault that Turkish) from 1570 and 1573 list it among protrudes from the south façade where other assets as a donation of the late the mihrab niche is located. This apsidal Husameddin Pasa thus supporting the form of the mihrab that can be traced earlier attribution. A new Muslim quarter back to the 14th century is the result of formed around the new mosque. Celebi the intense mutual influences of the Early adored the artistic features of the mosque Ottoman and Late Byzantine architecture. noting some technical details, such as that The porch built on the northern side is of the stone minaret was covered with lead. harmonious proportions and simple form, In these historic sources, however, there a characteristic of the architecture of the is no record of the life and deeds of the early 16th century. It has three small domes donor of the mosque, Husameddin Pasa. among which the central dominates, and The mosque is a single domed edifice they are supported by four cylindrical with a square floor plan admired for its marble columns. The two central columns simple and well proportioned structure. are made of green marble and have capitels The dome is made of brick and lime mortar. decorated with stalactite ornaments, while

www.dmwc.org.mk • September 2015 21 History

the lateral ones are made of white marble, turbe has octagonal base and is covered and their capitels are decorated with the with tiles It was recently renovated but motif known as Turkish triangles. The the experts say this small building is not decorative features of the central arch remarkable from the aesthetic point of are further emphasized by the alternating view. rows of red and white stone blocks. This The only renovation of the mosque type of decoration is characteristic of the took place in 1950 when the interior was time of the construction and is repeated adapted to serving as a gallery space. above the main entrance on the north side However the gallery was short lived, and of the mosque and above the windows in 1956 the mosque was closed to the left and right of it. An octagonal minaret public. stands on the west side of the mosque. Today, prayers are held in Husameddin The mosque was built with large, Pasa Mosque twice a week, the main finely chiselled blocks of yellowish stone mosque of Stip being Kadin Ana. At the brought to the site from the vicinity of same time, there is also a demand from Zegligovo near Kumanovo. Its stylistic the numerous Roma Muslim population to and architectural features clearly indicate erect a new, third, mosque in the city in that it belongs to the late classical phase the neighbourhood Duzlak where many of of Ottoman architecture influenced by the them live. early Byzantine style of construction. As the local predominantly Christian As many other Ottoman religious sites, population of the city believes that the Husameddin Pasa Mosque is accompanied foundation of the Husameddin Pasa by other religious objects. Thus, south mosque belonged to the church of St of the mosque is the turbe (small Elijah, there is a tradition to visit the mausoleum) of the sheikh Muhyuddin mosque site on St. Elijah Day on 2 August. Rumi Baba mentioned by Evliya Celebi. The

22 September 2015•www.dmwc.org.mk History The People’s Monastery he Monastery of Lesok is one just eight kilometres away from Tetovo of the most popular religious and only 600 meters above sea level on sites in the country. It is the south eastern side of Sar Mountain. easily accessible, always full But the monastery has a long history of of people and hosts different important religious and communal events, Tsocial and cultural activities. One of the and the local population cares greatly for reasons for its popularity is that it is its sanctuary.

www.dmwc.org.mk • September 2015 23 History

The oldest foundations belong to a excavations revealed the shape of a free church that is mentioned in the chrysobull cross with a central dome and a portico of the Byzantine Emperor Basil II when on the western side. Fragments of a richly he re-conquered Macedonia from Tzar decorated marble iconostasis were found Samuil in 1019 and created a new system and are part of the permanent exhibit of of dioceses. the Museum in Tetovo. This church is The present monastery complex consists now outside the confines of the monastic of three churches of which only two, the complex which, for security reasons, was Church of St. Athanasius and the Church formed around the Church of the Holy the Holy Mother of God, are currently Mother of God around 1600 and included active, surrounded by many auxiliary the Episcopal residence. buildings. Historical records show that the oldest The first church, also called ‘the Old surviving church in the present complex Monastery’, is dedicated to St. Athanasius dates back to at least 1326 when it was of Alexandria and was built in 1321 as the mentioned in a chrysobull of King Stefan endowment of the first bishop of Polog of Decani who made it a dependant when the area became part of the Serbian (metoh) of the Church Holy Mother of state and formed a new diocese added to God of Ljeviska in Prizren. It is also a Pec Patriarchy. It was a small church with church dedicated to the Mother of God. a small monastic complex, but it played This three-apse building is an excellent an important role, and for its architectural example of Byzantine art. The church has and artistic value is was proclaimed a three layers of frescoes. The surviving parts protected cultural heritage site. The of the lower segments of the lateral walls

24 September 2015•www.dmwc.org.mk History and the apse built of stone combined with activity. Although the original monastery brick, as well as the fragments of figures was small, it played an important of archpriests on interior surfaces of the educational and religious role in the whole apse that was once part of the composition Polog region. The monastery and the ‘Liturgy of the Holy Archpriests’ also area were called the Jerusalem of Polog confirm that the church existed in the 14th with 44 small and big churches in this century. The fragmented inscription on relatively small area. There are ruins of the north wall and some of the frescoes five churches and chapels identified so far refer to the renewal of the church in by the archaeologists. 1646 by the Bishop Nicanorus. But most The monastery also hosts the Festival of these frescoes were painted over in of Macedonian Choirs. There is a very 1879 by Mihail Gjurcinov from Galicnik. He popular folk song about the siege of Lesok followed closely the iconographic concept Monastery by the local Muslim militia after of his predecessor as it can be seen from Orthodox Macedonian freedom fighters the illustrated cycle of the ‘Hymn to the accidentally killed two of their men. The Holy Mother of God’. At this time a porch militia thought that the ‘komiti’ fighters was added to the western side. hid in the monastery so they besieged it The central and the most monumental asking the hegumen to hand them over. church in the monastery complex, the The hegumen denied any presence of the church of Saint Athanasius, was built fighters in the monastery. There followed in 1924 next to the Church of the Holy several days of hostilities involving a large Mother of God. The monastery was built in number of civilians on both sides. In the the new medieval-like style with multiple end, Ottoman authorities intervened and domes and complex cross floor plans. The resolved the situation. church suffered in the 2001 ethnic conflict One of the characteristics of the but was soon restored and decorated with monastery is the continued presence of new wall paintings. monks since Kiril Pejcinovic revived it. One The monastery yard is the site of the of the most interesting brotherhoods were grave of Hegumen Kiril Pejcinovic, a the Russian monks, Valaams, who came hieromonk originally from the nearby from the Valaam Monastery in Finland village of Tearce who revived the monastic in 1926. They refused to follow the new life here after his return from Mt. Athos Gregorian calendar adopted by the Finnish in 1818. He was one of the major figures Orthodox Church thus facing expulsion. of the Macedonian enlightenment in the They were welcomed by the Skopje early 19th century. He improved the literacy Metropolitan Varnava and sent to Lesok as among the local population, enriched the a group but were later dispersed to other monastery library and translated books monasteries of the Skopje Eparchy. They into the local dialect. One of the rooms left significant traces in both religious life in the residential part of the complex an in the life of local communities. has been turned into his memorial as a Today there is a traditional restaurant as tribute to his accomplishments. Starting part of the monastery, and the dormitories from 1972, the Association of Literary have been restored to accommodate Translators holds its annual international tourists in the summer. This attracts even meetings each August in the vicinity of the more visitors it in the high season. It is also monastery thus honouring Kiril Pejcinovic. a destination of many school excursions It was not by accident that Kiril and part of various educational programs. Pejcinovic revived this monastery and made it the base for his enlightenment

www.dmwc.org.mk • September 2015 25 Archaeology The Lost Town of Gortinija

ying just a few kilometres millennium BC. It is centrally positioned in away from the Greek border, a strategically important area dominating Gevgelija is famous for its transit the Vardar Plain, the city of Gevgelija and tourism and casinos serving the the river valley. It consists of two rocky foreigners travelling through hills, one higher and steeper than the Lthe country. It is a modern town with other, joined by a saddle-like elevation open minded cosmopolitan population. and overlooking the Vardar river bed on The most important reasons why people one side and the present-day town of visit Gevgelija is its Mediterranean spirit, Gevgelija on the other. fun and the entertainment they get Since 1995, the site has been intensively from the developed chain of hotels and explored and sixteen cultural strata casinos. Very few visitors are familiar with belonging to six different settlements Gevgelija’s famous archaeological site have been identified. The city life started Vardarski Rid and the artifacts which can as early as the Bronze Age and continued be seen in the City Museum. The site is through different ages and cultures. one of the oldest known settlements in Different burial rituals identified in the Macedonia, which thanks to its position numerous graves are good markers of the and configuration, sustained residents in multitude of cultures in this location. The both prehistoric and ancient periods. economic, social and cultural development The site has a history of intensive life of the region over the centuries is for more than 1000 years around the first reflected in the size and type of the six

26 September 2015•www.dmwc.org.mk Archaeology settlements. In prehistoric times, more The most important period when the city specifically during the Iron Age, Vardarski boomed was the fourthth century. Although Rid was the central settlement of the it took less space than the previous Paionians. During the Classical Period it Iron Age settlement, the discovered was one of the several settlements on buildings and other findings document the bank of the Vardar (Axios) River. In an economically and culturally strong the age of the Macedonian Empire it was settlement with all the characteristics of probably the administrative centre of the urban life. The great town of Stoa, works Amphaxitis region. In these centuries the of art and the circulation of different coins region was among the most developed at the end of the V and IV century B.C. are and economically advanced areas. The the best illustration of that. Private houses mighty local culture blossomed due to were built using river stones and mud intensive mining, metallurgy and the good bricks. Roofs were made with massive geographical position. It was no accident ceramic tiles. Most probably this flourishing that the ancient Macedonian state spread city was destroyed by Celtic raids, as in this direction after the foundation of the aggressively and simultaneously the new capital Pela in the Lower Vardar demolished structures testify. A ceramic valley during this period. Many artifacts vessel with 51 silver tetradrachmas built associated with the Macedonian state of into one of the structures speaks of the Alexander the Great and his father Philip possible attempt to hide the treasure in – shields with the famous state symbol, case of such a raid. the 16-ray sun, helmets, wine cups, silver Yet the city survived and even spread coins with their faces, etc. – have been its urban texture to a wider area with discovered here. new architecture and cultural life. Again,

www.dmwc.org.mk • September 2015 27 Archaeology

coins from the Hellenistic up to early Roman period bear witness to that. Archaeologists found that the settlement from this time is known as the ancient city of Gortinia. A whole quarter of artisans and craftsmen developed on the so-called southern terrace at that time. An entire complex of blacksmith’s, pottery and other workshops as well as storage facilities and shops with a characteristic inventory were unearthed. The cultural layers show that the settlement was destroyed at least four times and revived again, until it was finally demolished and gradually abandoned between the second and the first centuries BC. The lavish private house from the second century known as Collector’s House is the most important finding from this time. In this set of ruins, dating from the second century BC, archaeologists found a wealth of treasures from much earlier periods. They speculate that the owner of this house must have been a rich man with an interest in artifacts that were already ancient in 200 BC. The life in the town ceased for good during the Roman conquest of Macedonia. The Tower and the City Wall represent only a small part of the discovered Acropolis defense system constructed in the face of those tumultuous events. Yet, the life in the town ended abruptly not to resume for another thousand of years. The later artifacts recently discovered on the southern terrace are skeletons in the graves dating back to the 12th and 13th centuries.

28 September 2015•www.dmwc.org.mk History

Lazaropole: Village of Legends n the last 100 years Macedonia traditional architectural style of the region experienced extreme urbanization make it a perfect destination, especially in resulting in the move of the rural the autumn. population into towns which have Lazaropole is in the bounds of Mavrovo grown without plan leaving the National park, but it lies much higher than Ivillages deserted. Thus many big villages the lake. It can be reached both from with long histories became depopulated Mavrovo village and from the Radika River ghost places leaving the stories of their valley near the Monastery of St. John past grandeur only in the memories of a Bigorski. Situated on a flat hilltop plateau, few new urban dwellers. Lazaropole is one Lazaropole is perfect for long walks in a such village nested in the legendary Mijak fantastic oak and beech forest scenery area between Mavrovo and Debar artificial and breathing some of the cleanest air lakes. Lazaropole is not as famous as its in the country at the elevation of 1350 neighbour and rival Galicnik, nor has meters, the altitude at which only a few it been revived to the same extent. But settlements are built in the country. The at the same time its legends and some mild mountain climate due to the influence renovated houses representative of the of the Mediterranean which extends along

www.dmwc.org.mk • September 2015 29 History

the River Radika, gives the area over 2000 and educators. It had registered families sunny hours per year. Scents of mountain since the 1536 Ottoman census which flowers, fascinating views of the summits was important for collecting taxes. One of the surrounding mountains, the herds of the main economic and social pillars of wild horses as well as the opportunity of the village was its status of a derven to take horse riding lessons at the nearby village. It means that the local population farm make a visit to the village a splendid provided security and guiding services experience. for those who were passing through the Behind today’s oblivion here hides a mountain gorges (derven) guaranteeing settlement with a colourful history and the safety of each traveller in the name strong economy dating back at least of the Ottoman authorities. This service to the Middle Ages. According to the allowed the local population to carry legends, the village was named after a weapons, something that was not allowed local medieval hero Lazar who was the to other Christians. While protecting only survivor of the Ottoman attack on travellers, the villagers also managed the village. He crawled outside the cave to keep criminal gangs away from the where all other residents were ambushed village so that it prospered in peace. and killed and built a new home which Another economic pillar of the welfare grew into Lazaropole. There are about of the village was stock breeding for 400 houses in the village. The oldest as which Bistra and surrounding mountains well as the renovated ones are built in the were ideal thanks to its relatively small typical Mijak highland style reminiscent of altitude of around 1600 metres. Since medieval towers. They had two or three the 16th century, the villages in the area high stone floors, and wooden terraces possessed permission from the Sultan to and rooms on the top level. do stock breeding. This created wealthy The village was home to many, carvers, and powerful sheep farmers and landlords fresco and icon painters, master builders (called kjaja). The families had their own

30 September 2015•www.dmwc.org.mk History

who was his patron saint (Gjurcin being the local version of George) and got the permission directly from the Sultan whom he visited personally in 1838. Anatoly Zografski, the Hegumen of the famous Zograf Monastery on Mount Athos and the special envoy to the Russian Patriarchy in Athens who was born in Lazaropole also helped the construction of the new church. The Church was built from stone under special arrangements made by the manager Kjaja Gjurcin. He even paid for a 4 meters high stone wall around the church thus making it unique in its layout. The altar was built of lime stone from the village of Rosoki valued for its acoustics. The iconostasis was deep carved in wood by the famous local carvers. The fresco painting was commenced by the zograf Mikhail and finished by the young Dimitrija Perkoski from the village of Tresonce. He farms (bacilo in Macedonian) with around later became the prominent Dico Zograf, 5 000 sheep each. They kept the herds on the painter of so many churches and one the mountains during the summer season, of the founding fathers of Macedonian while in winter they travelled down with modern visual art. the sheep as far as Thessaloniki and The new national borders of the Balkan Kavala. The landlords were even granted states emerging from the Ottoman Empire permission to employ sejmens – the disrupted the natural winter and summer herds’ guards against poachers. routes of the local stock breeders. Thus the The story of the village church of stock breeding was seriously scaled down St. George built in 1838 marvellously after the demise of the empire causing illustrates the life and the outreach of poverty and depopulation of the whole Lazaropole villagers. The main donor area. The Mijaks were the first to migrate of the church known as ktitor was a to the Balkan capitals and later overseas, wealthy landlord and the head man of expanding the businesses which used to the village, Gjurcin Kokale. He expanded be auxiliary to their main occupation as his business into horse transportation, stock breeders: baking, pastry making, money lending and trading, and acquired construction, wood carving, fresco the position of a military commander painting and church building. and knez (village lord). He authored the One of the rarely popularized facts first known autobiographic text in the about Lazoropole is that the most famous Macedonian dialect written with Slavic Macedonian folk dance “Teskoto” (The Hard letters and called Nakazanie (Story). He One) originates from this area. Apart from was also allowed to carry a weapon and the famous teachers and national heroes like protect the area from the criminal gangs Hegumen Ilarion, Vasil Ikonomov and Isaija usually coming from the neighbouring Mazovski, two Macedonian contemporary regions of today’s Albania. He decided to writers, Ante Popovski and Simon Drakul, erect a church in the honour of St. George were born in Lazaropole.

www.dmwc.org.mk • September 2015 31 Viniculture History of Winemaking in Macedonia

Winemaking equipment brought from France upon establishing the winery ine has been produced of them turned up around the town of in these lands since the Kavadarci in the Tikveš Wine District. 13th century BC and has These bronze and ceramic objects are remained a constant undoubtedly relics of the classical town feature of agricultural of Stobi, the ruins of which are both andW social life ever since. Despite this, impressive and accessible. This town was the region has experienced its share of of strategic importance as a stopping point abrupt change. As we trace the history of on the long road from the Danube River to winemaking from antiquity through the the Aegean Sea. middle ages towards modernity, we can Stobi is of course the most see that social, economic, political and famous remnant of the classical cultural changes have impacted the wine world, its multiple excavations have industry in Macedonia in ways unlike those regularly unearthed references to in any other country in the world. different civilisations including Neolithic Numerous archaeological artefacts foundations. As recently as 2009 a well pointing to the importance of wine making preserved head of Augustus, founder of across Macedonia have been found. Most Rome, was discovered. It is the largest

32 September 2015•www.dmwc.org.mk Viniculture site of its kind in Macedonia and as alternative to wine. Easy to make and such is central to the branding of the store, rakija developed as the cultural new Stobi Winery in Gradsko. beverage of the Slavic and Macedonian There are other sites too. In the people throughout the Balkans, a tradition town of Valandovo near Gevgelija, that is still a part of daily life in the region ancient sites dating back to the seventh today. century BC have been discovered Towards the end of the 19th century the at Isar Marvinci and Idominae. Ottoman hegemony was waning. In 1885 It is difficult to contemplate the effect that in Kavadarci PanoVelkov, a merchant and 500 years of Ottoman rule had on life in the nobleman, built what is now the oldest Balkans. Every aspect of life and culture was winery in the country, Tikves. in some way influenced. Whether through Ottoman domination completely ended the cultivated, but relatively clandestine, in 1913, but in the beginning of the 20th strife for a national identity, or through the century, between 1908 and 1914, 30,000 acquiescence to Turkish cultural customs hectares of vineyards in Macedonia were during all these years, Macedonia’s heritage completely destroyed by the phylloxera and traditions were to a large extent pest. This period marked a decrease influenced by the Ottomans. in viticutlure in the country and with Culturally, the Ottomans were the turbulence of war, a major part of not interested in wine. According grapevine areas had disappeared by 1920. to the teachings of the Koran, the However, despite the difficult political and consumption of alcohol is forbidden and economic circumstances, viticulturists consequently winemaking, perceived as from the region gathered together and an inherently Christian custom, effectively made an effort to renovate the grapevine ceased. Although table grapes were by grafting home grapevine on American grown, the empire was more interested in vines that were resistant to phylloxera. the cultivation of tobacco, a legacy that In 1925 King Alexander Karadjordjvevic remains prominent today in Macedonia’s and his wife Maria founded the Elenov strong tobacco industry. Winery choosing Demir Kapija in Tikves Christians choosing to live by their as the site capable of rivalling the great own customs were forced to operate aristocratic wines of Western Europe. in the shadows. They still consumed It is reputed that the King’s experts alcohol but clever systems of staying chose Demir Kapija after burying lamb’s under the radar were needed. Rakija, a heads at various locations throughout his form of flavoured brandy emerged as an Kingdom, from Macedonia to Slovenia, in order to ascertain which area would offer the best fertility. The slower the head decayed, the more suitable the site. Consequently Demir Kapija was chosen and Elenov became the one of the first wineries in the Balkans to own its own vineyards. In the aftermath of the Second World War, Macedonia became one of the six republics constituting the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. During this pursuit One of the premises at the winery- once stables of of creating a balanced and just society lipizzaners, later used as wine cellar centralised economic planning realigned

www.dmwc.org.mk • September 2015 33 Viniculture

injustice. Models of western capitalism by their very nature created winners and losers, and the wine sector was no different. Restructuring large, vertically integrated wineries and casting them off under new private ownership into a globalised competitive world is not easy. After Macedonia signed its declaration of independence, the former state owned wineries were privatised and a number of small family owned wineries emerged Villa Marija-the entrance to Queen Marija’s villa all over the country. Growers became owners of the land they worked. Many of the way viticulture, winemaking and its those whose dreams used to be to simply distribution would work. All elements of to sell the fruit started to produce their the industry were nationalised. Ownership own wines. Growers were back in control of everything from the land, barrels, of the brands’ direction and destiny. They equipment to the wine passed to the state are still looking for new markets and new for the collective good. Thirteen wineries ways of communicating their messages. were created in the Republic of Macedonia, However, the country’s domestic market mainly for the production of bulk wine. At is relatively small and it is no wonder that the same time there were more than 30 000 Macedonian wineries have turned mainly families that owned small vineyards and towards exporting their wines in order to sold the grapes to the 13 large wineries. sustain their businesses. Today, almost The effects, like in all other countries 80% of the wine produced in the country experiencing this change in the cultural is exported. fabric, were extremely detrimental. Growers Despite all the challenges that the were paid for quantity and not quality of their wineries in the country face on a daily basis, grapes, and the sale was always guaranteed there are new markets to conquer, more regardless of quality. In its turn the wine medals to win, and more opportunities to would always be made regardless of the promote Macedonian wines to be exploited. quality of grapes, and the resulting product I am positive that these challenges will would always be distributed throughout the motivate our wine producers to use the wine federation and beyond. There was a small potential of the country wisely, to invest in allocation for the domestic consumption within its growth and to let the people in the world the Macedonian republic. Crucially though, know about the exquisite wines of this small this was bulk wine. Socialism and its economic sunny country. principles would dominate until 1990. Ivana Simjanovska The collapse of communism and its consequences facilitated rapid change. It was the end of an era. Although Macedonia transitioned relatively peacefully to a parliamentary democracy, a decade of nationalist conflict in the former Yugoslavia contributed to instability in the region. Attempting to transition from a centrally planned economy to a free market was not without difficulty and

34 September 2015•www.dmwc.org.mk Literature Blaze Minevski

Blaze Minevski (1961, Gevgelija, Macedonia) is the author of the novels “Me, Tito and Mickey Mouse“, “Should Have Taken a Photo before We Started Hating Each Other”, “The Mark” , “The Memories of a Dandelion” and ”The Performers”. In 2008 ”The Mark” won “Stale Popov” award for the best book of prose which is given by the Macedonian Writers’ Society, “Novel of the Year” award from the newspaper “Utrinski vesnik”, and ”13th of November” award from the City of Skopje. He has also written four books of stories, one of which, “The Dandelion Season”, won the Racin Award for the best book of prose in 2002. Minevski also writes plays. His plays ”The Shriek”, “The Female Contribution to the Night”,” Dumb Language”,” The Cradle”, ”The Maquise de Sade of Mariovo” and “The Perfection or Death” were premiered at the Ohrid Summer International Festival and were present in the repertoire of the Macedonian National Theatre in Skopje, as well as of other theatres in the country for several seasons. For the play ”Dumb Language” he won the Macedonian National Theatre Award for Best Play of the Year in 2000. His plays have also been performed by Macedonian theatres abroad: in Russia, Serbia, Slovenia, Bulgaria, Albania and France, and some of them have also won other awards. His novels and stories have been translated into English, French, German, Italian, Spanish, Russian, Roman, Slovenian, Hungarian, Turkish, Croatian and Serbian languages.

Father Now there are many people that write I was quiet, waiting for my eyes to accustom about what happened in our time, but only to the shadows. I came closer to her and I the two of us have remembered equally long, slowly lifted the cover. Then she turned her because we were born on the same day and in eyes, and she started to pull her shirt, and, the same town. I left with the First Cohort of just as she pulled it up to her belly button, Archers and you remained there. I think that my body penetrated her and my holy semen you already know who I am, but I too know was spilled in her noble womb. As you know, who you are, and I know what you are, and brother Teophilos, there are things that God I know that you have been writing the story does not understand, although he himself has about him collecting the testimonies in a book created them. I know that I rested on her no that could be the book of books. That is why, longer than a minute, maybe less, as the one brother Teophilos, I am sending this story of from Azinaga writes, and then she pulled her mine, so that you know that not everything shirt down, she pulled her cover up and she is the way it has been written by those who covered her face with her other hand. It was never witnessed what had happened before not before dawn that I realised that I was his star ascended. And everything happened the first man in her life. I want to say, I am in this and in no other way, brother Teophilos. the father, brother Teophilos, although some I am already a man of age; if my counting beggars wander around saying that I did not serves me well, I am almost eighty, and I still exist, that my son was born without a father. Is remember quite well what happened under there a man in this world who was conceived the cloud that bore the face of a dove. She by the wind, by nothing, brother Teophilos? was sixteen, and I was six years older. I Every human being has both a mother and closed the door behind me, I pushed it and a father, and my son is no exception, for he

www.dmwc.org.mk • September 2015 35 Literature is human. Still, I would not have written this, I am a soldier, I have a heart of stone, my brother Teophilos, if I had not understood heart beats for revenge, it beats to hate, that those who wander around the villages brother Teophilos, but I still admit that I with their canes started to talk that my son have shed two tears for him. Once when I had been so ruthless and in his dying hour heard that he had entered the temple when he even denounced his mother, rudely calling he was twelve and everybody who listened her “woman” rather than “mother”. This to him were amazed by his wise responses, was the drop that spilt the glass, brother and, for the second time, when they went to Teophilos. It is true that when they crucified a wedding with his mother and he turned the him, when they divided his clothes among water into wine when the wine was finished. them drawing a lot, she stood under the cross Now you might say why didn’t you stay, why with a disciple. How can I believe that our didn’t you marry her, but you know Augustus, son, my son, brother Teophilos, really called and you know Tiberius until the fifteenth year his mother, the one who had cried kneeling of his reign. We slept hugging our spears in by the cross, “woman” rather than “mother”? the castrum by the road; it was forbidden And even more, he said that the disciple to leave; I could see her only when I was who stood next to her was her son, utterly patrolling. I want you to know that there used humiliating her in front of the people. If he to be nothing between us for days. We sat had been so insulted that everybody around in silence under the deadly shadow hunting her knew about me and did not want it to the moon with our wet foreheads so that we be known, why did he have to humiliate her could look at each other. It was three months so much as he was dying? Of course, he did later that what happened did happen, I have not do that; no son would call his mother already admitted it. Celsus was the only “woman” with such a voice and such malice, one who wrote in his tractate “On the Real unworthy even of the lower provincial whore. Doctrine”, the one that was handed around It is just a ruthless lie of those who trade with the cohort in rolls before being exchanged for his death, brother Teophilos! wine, that she “was with a child from a Roman soldier”. Obviously he too did not know that That is why I have decided to send you this I was the soldier, or my name might have story of mine, so that you know what really been in another roll, because the ones that happened rather than what is invented by those I saw were but a few and there must have who cheat using the name of my son for their false been others. Besides, one of those, brother testimonies. They are by all means much better Teophilos, those that have invented the off like this; they invent, and live on it, rather than story without me, now writes about a secret, fishing, planting, keeping sheep or collecting taxes mysterious travel of my son to our city, he for the empire. According to what I have read, writes that he entered a house, not wanting but also according to what the soldiers from the anybody to know about that. Do you know other cohorts coming here tell me, I think that it why he did not want anybody to know about is good that at least they admit that she had been that? Because that is my parents’ house, pregnant before they married her to that poor old brother Teophilos, our two-storey house. If man, who knew that she was pregnant because the time that can only be determined by the not only that he had not been with her, but he reign of the emperor is correct, my mother saw her for the first time when she was brought Shua was still alive. But it is not the only to his house. I know that he wanted to leave thing, brother Teophilos. Three weeks later, her quietly, not to embarrass her, I know that the people from my cohort who had been he wanted to help her leave the place and give sent to deliver a message, brought a letter birth in secret, in some cave, maybe, but she had written in her handwriting. The letter came to left to her relatives seven kilometres further from the camp thirty three kilometres north of Bad the house of her fiancé, and she stayed there for Kreuznach, where the river of Nahe flows into seven months. As I understood from afar, because the Rajna. She wrote that he had asked about I was in Lychnidos, the town of Cadmus, at that me, that he wanted to see me, but that it was time, the old man was still a very noble man, and too late for it to happen in public. I realised the marriage between him and my only one, my that he wanted to see me in secret, but, alas, unforgettable love, was officialised only after the we never found the time for this, brother child had been born. To this day, I do not know Teophilos, because when I decided to go how they later invented the story that I never there, you know, the temple, the rebels, had existed, and how they convinced him that I had already happened. Still, brother Teophilos, I never existed. finally realised that my son had always known

36 September 2015•www.dmwc.org.mk Literature that he was my son, and only she could have they died. Still, if I had been there, and if that told him that, my only, my unforgettable love, was so, I don’t know, I might have given him my virgin who still pulls her shirt down and the strength not to denounce his mother once still pulls her cover up to hide her face from he had to denounce his father, because she the cloud that looks like a dove. had deserved that living all of her life being mocked as an adulteress because of him. I What more can I say, brother Teophilos? know that my son died at about three o’clock Now, when he is dead as all dead men are, in the afternoon, on the same day when he and I might still be alive although I am almost was crucified. And that was it. I want to say, eighty, I want it to be known that I too have I do not need anybody who resurrected to crucified many people on the same hill where exist, but I need my son, the one I knew my son died, and I know how it must have existed, and the one that will exist as long as I been for him watching the valley of roses. exist and my tomb exists. Of course, I forgive The death by crucifixion is a slow process; him, for he was forced to accept the story it can last for couple of days. The victims without me, not knowing that it would leave are naked, and the sun shines like hell. I him no space to be a man, to live like a man know that my son was nailed on the cross and to die like one. And death should not be on Thursday, not on Friday, at nine o’clock praised, because death looks like everything, in the morning. Before sticking a spear in but it resembles nothing. his stomach, and I know what it means for I have done it to many people, he must have Now, brother Teophilos, as they carve my thought of me, but I was too far to rescue tomb in gray marble, I still think whether to him. Then, brother Teophilos, maybe then, write: Here rests Tiberius Iulius Abdes realising that it was too late, he scolded his Pantera, the soldier who bravely served mother calling her “woman”, and both then, the First Cohort of Archers for forty years, and now, it could only be said to the slaves or just: Pantera, a Roman solider and a and the lowest of prostitutes. Everybody else father of… Yes, you know whose, brother has a name, brother Teophilos. Even the cows Teophilos, everybody writes to you, even the have names. Why did my son do this? Was ones that have never spoken my name. And it because he could not forgive her, even as you know how hard it is to live as if you don’t he was dying, that she had agreed to keep exist, and you do, only that you cannot prove silent and proclaim me a man who never that you have existed, for there is no proof that existed? Or maybe he never forgave her for you have. Apart from the tomb that might once being with a Roman soldier, although I am a be discovered north of Bad Kreuznach, at the Jew? I don’t know, brother Teophilos. I only spot where the river of Nahe flows into the know that maybe that was the reason that Rajna. Except that it is not finished yet. he was pierced with the longest spear. I have also pierced several men who spoke before Translated by Elizabeta Bakovska

Macedonian writer Blaze Minevski has written a ghost story. “Academician Sisoye’s Inaugural Speech” is not a story about ghosts (well, in its way, it is that) but one seemingly told by a ghost, by something less, even, by a narrator – Sivakov – who lays claim to evanescence. Floating in free space, as it were, this story is in no way vaporous or nebulous, but pulses with comedy, vibrant and exuberant, charming and ludic. David J. Single, literary critic

“The Mark“ is a literary work of a skilled master of words, obviously lavishly gifted with inspiration and craft. Together they make postmodern magic. Venko Andonovski, university professor and award winning writer

“The Mark“ is an original prose accomplishment where life’s absurdities and paradoxes are powerfully reflected in complex and fatal life stories of two young enemies in love. The author’s narrative is mature and lifelike merging the modern and postmodern prosaic experiences in one stylish narration. Olivera Nikolova, novelist

www.dmwc.org.mk • September 2015 37 Pets Domestic Cat in Macedonia your domestic cat to be clean by brushing it with a special comb, especially if your cat has long hair. When the cat takes care of its fur by licking, it actually swallows big amounts of hair and it may have problems expelling hairballs out of its stomach. There is a special kind of food for gentle ejection of hairballs out of the cat’s stomach and by using this food you can help your cat. Cats are the most prominent carnivores of all domestic animals. Domestic cat owners must know that by neglecting the cat’s biological needs, wrong or inadequate nutrition cat’s health can be put at risk. It is very harmful to feed the cat only with innards, red meat, milk and cheese. The ne of the most common diet should be varied. Small kittens need pets in Macedonia is the cat junior food that will satisfy their needs (Felis silvestris catus). of vitamins and minerals for healthy Traditionally Macedonians development. Pregnant and lactating cats keep cats as pets either at also need enriched food, versatile, dry Ohome or in the yard. A big number of and canned food, to help the mother cat street cats is also fed and taken care of by bear the pressure of raising kittens. You cat lovers throughout the country. will also need to provide a special food for There are homeless cats that used easier digestion, because otherwise they to be pets, but unfortunately they were will chew on your plants. Be warned: the abandoned or lost. Some of them are still majority of domestic ornamental plants very friendly and will come to you to ask are poisonous for cats. for attention. Street cats can be found in If you decide to sterilize your cat, you cities and in suburban settlements across will have to take a special care of his or Macedonia. Street cats despite their her need for a balanced diet. Whether independent behaviour still depend on us your cat becomes fat as a result of for their health, nutrition and safety. improper diet or because of the hormones Domestic cats usually choose their own after castration or sterilization, weight corner in the home where they will sleep, gain reduces the vitality of your pet and but make sure it is a peaceful place and dramatically increases the risk of diseases. provide your pet with a bed and a pillow By using food with lower energy value you which will only be his/hers. For washing contribute to your cat’s overall health and a cat use only a special shampoo for cats help it get back in shape. Adult cats need and make sure to dry the fur; after bathing versatile food, based on poultry, fish, rice, the cat should stay some time in a warm vitamins, minerals and all the necessary room. Cats are often licking themselves components for healthy and long life. to care for their fur and cat’s inborn need The amount of food your cat needs to be always clean is well known. Help depends on several factors such as age,

38 September 2015•www.dmwc.org.mk Pets

above, the diversity of taste of the food is very important. Don’t ever forget to provide a container with fresh drinking water. Cats are especially sensitive to lack of water, they will easier stand hunger than thirst.

Some helpful tips: - Domestic cats are not your property, they are living beings that require attention and warmth, and are very sensitive; - Don’t give someone a cat as a present, unless you have previously ascertained that the cat will be welcomed and loved in that home; - The cat is not a living toy and does not tolerate rudeness and cruelty; the cat has the right to defend itself; pregnancy, breastfeeding kittens, weight, - Buy the cat several toys, such as mice, balls, sterilization, but for orientation only, a toys with feathers. In this way the cat will be 5 kg cat needs 200 grams of dry food satisfied with the toys and the children would throughout the day. As already mentioned be interested in playing with the cat.

www.dmwc.org.mk • September 2015 39 Art

Djelil Rufati was born on 22 November, 1957, in the Gorna Reka village of Zjuzjenje, municipality of Mavrovo and Rostushe. He graduated from the Sculpture Department of the Prishtina Art Academy under the mentorship of Prof. Agim Chavderbasha. He worked as an art teacher at the Panche Poposki High School in Gostivar from 1982 till 2004 and since 1994 he has been the Professor of Sculpture at the Tetovo State University Art Faculty of which he is also a co-founder. He has had several individual exhibitions in Macedonia, Kosovo, France, the USA and Switzerland and participated in numerous group exhibitions in Macedonia and abroad. His sculptures have been installed in the streets of Tetovo, Negotino and Struga in Maceodnia and Mitrovica, Klina and Drenica in Kosovo.

egends and myths of the Albanian people of his region about gods, the sun, dance and animals Lare the source of Rufati’s art, and so is the filigree technique of Gorna Reka area. But in fact these themes are inherent in the history of all peoples. Thus, Rufati speaks of the history and tradition of his people, but

Rufati creates his sculptures with a refined taste that aims to achieve harmony of form and material. The impression is that he does not force the material, but on the contrary, respects it. Agim Rudi, sculptor

also for the universal histories, legends, mythologies and traditions of humanity. Transforming legends and mythological tales, he establishes a modern dialogue with the past and creates surrealistic associative forms. Gorancho Gjorgjievski

40 September 2015•www.dmwc.org.mk Art

www.dmwc.org.mk • September 2015 41 42 September 2015•www.dmwc.org.mk

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Blvd. Srbija bb. 1000 Skopje, R. Macedonia | [email protected], www.cevahirskycity.com.mk 4452 SeptemberDecember 2014•www.dmwc.org.mk2015•www.dmwc.org.mk