.png)
MAUSOLEUM OF PETER II PETROVIC-NJEGOŠ
CREATED BY #62321
PETER II PETROVIC-NJEGOŠ (1813–1851) WAS NOT ONLY THE RULER AND SPIRITUAL LEADER OF MONTENEGRO, BUT ALSO AN OUTSTANDING POET AND PHILOSOPHER. HIS MOST FAMOUS WORK, THE MOUNTAIN WREATH (GORSKI VIJENAC), IS CONSIDERED A MASTERPIECE OF SLAVIC LITERATURE. HE WANTED TO BE BURIED ON THE SUMMIT OF MOUNT LOVĆEN, WHERE IN 1845 HE BUILT A CHAPEL DEDICATED TO HIS PREDECESSOR, ST. PETER OF CETINJE. AFTER HIS DEATH IN 1851, HE WAS INITIALLY BURIED IN A MONASTERY IN CETINJE, BUT IN 1855 HIS REMAINS WERE TRANSFERRED TO THE CHAPEL ON LOVĆEN.
THE CHAPEL WAS DESTROYED AND REBUILT SEVERAL TIMES: DESTROYED BY AUSTRIA-HUNGARY DURING WORLD WAR I, REBUILT IN 1925, AND DAMAGED AGAIN DURING WORLD WAR II. IN 1972, DESPITE PROTESTS FROM THE ORTHODOX COMMUNITY, THE CHAPEL WAS DEMOLISHED BY THE COMMUNIST AUTHORITIES, AND IN ITS PLACE, IN 1974, A MONUMENTAL MAUSOLEUM WAS ERECTED ACCORDING TO THE DESIGN OF CROATIAN SCULPTOR IVAN MEŠTROVIĆ.
ARCHITECTURE AND INTERIOR
THE MAUSOLEUM, LOCATED AT AN ALTITUDE OF 1,660 METERS ABOVE SEA LEVEL ON THE SUMMIT OF JEZERSKI VRH IN LOVĆEN NATIONAL PARK, IS CONSIDERED THE HIGHEST MAUSOLEUM IN THE WORLD. TO REACH IT, VISITORS MUST CLIMB 461 STONE STEPS, SOME OF WHICH LEAD THROUGH A TUNNEL CARVED INTO THE ROCK.
AT THE ENTRANCE TO THE MAUSOLEUM STAND TWO MONUMENTAL SCULPTURES MADE OF BLACK GRANITE, DEPICTING WOMEN IN TRADITIONAL COSTUMES. THE INTERIOR IS DECORATED WITH GOLDEN MOSAICS, AND THE CENTERPIECE IS A 28-TON SCULPTURE OF NJEGOŠ, UNDER WHICH IS A CRYPT WITH HIS MARBLE SARCOPHAGUS.
VIEWS AND SURROUNDINGS
THE VIEWING TERRACE OF THE MAUSOLEUM OFFERS A PANORAMIC VIEW OF A SIGNIFICANT PART OF MONTENEGRO, INCLUDING THE BAY OF KOTOR, THE DURMITOR MOUNTAINS, LAKE SKADAR, AND, IN GOOD WEATHER, EVEN THE COAST OF ITALY. THIS PLACE ATTRACTS BOTH TOURISTS AND PILGRIMS, OFFERING NOT ONLY BREATHTAKING LANDSCAPES BUT ALSO A PROFOUND SPIRITUAL EXPERIENCE.
HERITAGE AND CONTROVERSY
THE BEST TIME TO VISIT THE KRAVICA WATERFALLS IS IN SPRING, WHEN THE WATER LEVEL IS AT ITS HIGHEST AND THE SURROUNDING NATURE COMES TO LIFE. IN SUMMER, THE PLACE ATTRACTS SWIMMING AND PICNIC LOVERS, OFFERING A CHANCE TO COOL OFF ON HOT DAYS. IN AUTUMN AND WINTER, THE WATERFALLS ARE EQUALLY IMPRESSIVE, ALTHOUGH ACCESS TO SOME ATTRACTIONS MAY BE LIMITED DUE TO WEATHER CONDITIONS.
THE MAUSOLEUM IN DARKSIDE
THE MONUMENTAL SCENERY OF LOVĆEN, INCLUDING THE AREA AROUND THE MAUSOLEUM OF PETAR II PETROVIĆ NJEGOŠ, WAS THE SETTING FOR KEY SCENES IN THE MUSIC VIDEO FOR “DARKSIDE,” THE SECOND CHAPTER OF THE WORLD OF WALKER TRILOGY. DIRECTOR KRISTIAN BERG USED THIS SYMBOLIC LANDSCAPE AS THE SETTING FOR THE FINAL RECONCILIATION BETWEEN THE TWO WALKER FACTIONS.
ALTHOUGH THE MAUSOLEUM ITSELF IS NOT DIRECTLY SHOWN IN THE FRAME, ITS PRESENCE AS A TEMPORARY BACKDROP FOR THE MEETING AND UNIFICATION SCENE HAS A DEEP SYMBOLIC MEANING. IN THIS SCENE, THE LEADERS OF THE GROUPS REMOVE THEIR MASKS AND ALL THE WALKERS RAISE THEIR HANDS TO THE SKY, BEGINNING THE SYMBOLIC REBIRTH OF THE WORLD. THIS LOCATION, CONNECTING THE PAST WITH THE FUTURE AND SPIRITUALITY WITH MODERNITY, PERFECTLY CAPTURES THE MESSAGE OF THE SONG'S FINAL SEQUENCE.
