Master Theses
Margeti, Elisavet. Η εικόνα των Βαλκανίων στη Ρωσική Γραμματεία του 19ου Αιώνα: Οι Βούλγαροι στα Περιηγητικά Κείμενα των Βίκτορ Γκριγκορόβιτς και Πορφυρίου Ουσπένσκι / The Image of the Balkans in 19th Century Russian Literature: The Bulgarians in the Travelogues of Victor Grigorovich and Porphyrius Uspensky
The present thesis aims to investigate the perception of Balkan residents, with a particular focus on the Bulgarians living under Ottoman rule, in the Russian literature of the 19th century. Specifically, through the examination of travelogues written by two Russian explorers, Viktor Grigorovich and Porphyrius Uspensky, the study seeks to outline how the Bulgarians were perceived based on their Slavic heritage and Orthodox identity, against the backdrop of an emerging Pan-slavic sentiment during that period and of its interaction with the foreign policy of the Russian state, in the context of the dynamic and largely contradictory political landscape of the 19th century. Though these texts, which contributed in a recursive manner in shaping Russian consciousness, feelings of sympathy and solidarity towards the Slavic peoples are cultivated, resulting in an appeal for assistance by the Russian state in fostering and nurturing their Slavic consciousness and in resisting against the oppression imposed by both the Ottoman rule and the culturally expansionist co-religionist Greeks.
Supervisor: Andreas Lyberatos
Keywords: Russian Travelers, Ottoman Balkans, Travelogues, Panslavism, Bulgarians
Date: 2023, Athens
Publishing Institution: Panteion University, Department of Social and Political Sciences
Bogdanović, Katarina. Фирма В. Марковића и И. Павловића и увоз руских иконостаса
на територију Краљевине Србије / The firm V. Marković and I. Pavlović and the import of Russian iconostases into the territory of the Kingdom of Serbia
The main goal of the present master’s thesis on the topic of The firm V. Marković and I. Pavlović and the import of Russian iconostases into the territory of the Kingdom of Serbia is to investigate and analyze the role that the mentioned firm had in the transfer of Russian sacred art and its influence on the shaping of Serbian church art. The time frame covered by the master’s thesis is from 1884, when the firm was founded, until the beginning of World War I. Through formally structured chapters, the firm’s business is presented in the context of the economic-political, cultural, social, religious, and aesthetic values characteristic of its founding and operational period.
During the 19th century, the Serbian Orthodox Church and its leaders played a significant role in maintaining and strengthening Serbian-Russian ties. In this context, the figure of Metropolitan Mihailo Jovanović stands out, whose actions were reflected in shaping the Serbian Church according to the Russian model. Among the numerous aspects of his work, as the supreme head of the Serbian Orthodox Church of the Principality/Kingdom of Serbia, his advocacy for the import of liturgical items, books, and icons produced in the Russian Empire is particularly notable. This facilitated the establishment of specialized commercial establishments that dealt with the import and distribution of liturgical items, books, icons, and iconostases, such as the firm V. Marković and Pavlović, which is the focus of this study.
They began their operations by producing priestly vestments and later expanded their assortment to include liturgical items, books, icons, and iconostasis partitions. Their work largely enjoyed considerable support of the Serbian Church, which enabled a significant number of churches in the territory of the Kingdom of Serbia to be supplied with iconostases imported from Russia,
thereby playing a significant role in shaping Serbian sacred art during this period. Through the study and presentation of iconostases imported from Russia for churches in Kličevac, Boževac, and Dobri, the thesis contributes to illuminating the transfer of Russian sacred art to Serbian sacred art through the programmatic, artistic, and liturgical conception of iconostases.
Supervisor: Ana Kostić Djekić
Keywords: Church art, Metropolitan Mihailo Jovanović, Kingdom of Serbia, visual culture,
iconostasis, Kličevac, Dobra, Boževac
Field of Research: art history
Area of Expertise: art history and visual culture of the new century
Date: 2024, Belgrade
Publishing Institution: University of Belgrade, Faculty of Philosophy