Updates
24. July 2026.
Srbobran Jewel
The Serbian Orthodox Church of the Epiphany in Srbobran is a rare pearl of architecture and painting and is among the most beautiful and largest Orthodox churches in our country.
The first of the Bačka churches to be built with two tall bell towers symbolizing the Serbian people on both sides of the Sava and Danube rivers and the longing for unification dreamed of during the great patriotic struggle for freedom, it represents a classicist building with remnants of Baroque forms. Built over two decades, from 1786 to 1807, the Church of the Epiphany in Srbobran is categorized as a cultural monument of great importance due to its monumentality, beauty and exceptional cultural and historical values.
The interior is given special value by the paintings by one of the greatest Serbian painters of the Romantic era. The Baroque-style carving of the iconostasis, made between 1859 and 1861, was done by Georgije Dević, and the gilding by Adolf Nađ. The iconostasis, together with the wall painting in the spherical vault above the soleja, with impressive dimensions of 14 X 5.5 (77 m 2 ), was painted by Novak Radonić. With a gentle soul and without much faith in the value of his works, he, a native of Banat from Mol, left us a work of art of the highest value in this church in Bačka, and it was precisely in that place that he brought his icon-painting creation to the highest quality.
Throughout its turbulent and tragic history, the Srbobran church, which has been repeatedly bombed, shelled and burned, and then renovated, has, thanks to the cooperation of the Provincial Institute for the Protection of Cultural Monuments and the Serbian Orthodox Church Municipality of Srbobran, once again come up for restoration. The temple is currently undergoing important works. Preventive conservation of the wall paintings above the nave and preparations for the process of removing unstable plaster are underway.
Radonić's magnificent work, the mural of the Holy Trinity with the Evangelists, was found with a missing part of the painted layer, degraded beyond recognition in some places, and peeling, cracking and peeling were present everywhere. The Provincial Institute undertook preventive work on the painting in order to stop further deterioration, and it is necessary to carry out a demanding undertaking of removing the mural from the vault, its proper deposit and processing, and to carry out all conservation and restoration work in order to preserve the authenticity of this valuable work by Novak Radonić.
The project managers are Maja Velickovic, painter-conservator, and Valentina Ristic, architect-conservator, and the expert team that has carried out the work so far consists of Zorana Matkovic, sculptor-conservator, Milos Gavrilovic, painter, Slobodan Otic, professional civil engineer, and Marija Erdelji, photographer.
Photography: Maria Erdelji
