Church Lintel with the Founder's Inscription of Despot Stefan Lazarević

A part of the founder's inscription remained on the preserved fragment of the lintel, in three rows. The writing is in Serbian ekavian, in the Cyrillic script. In addition to ordinary ligatures, the inscription also contains a rare method of abbreviation and linkage, which achieved special monogram solutions. The letters are shaped with a chisel, with a decoration distinctive for pen and paper, rather than carving in a hard material. The overall artistry of the inscription, with exceptional ligatures and monograms, is equated with the beauty of a work of art of the highest category. At the beginning, at the height of the two upper lines of the text, a cross from Golgotha was carved. The incomplete text that follows states: "In the name of Christ, I, the pious Despot Stef... of Belgrade, have restored this place and added the choirs and ... ". The marble lintel with the inscription of Despot Stefan Lazarević about the renovation of the church is a real gem of Belgrade's medieval heritage, providing valuable information about the life and culture of the city’s inhabitants at the beginning of the 15th century.