Rosette

In the arrangement of Serbian churches of the late Middle Ages, rosettes, as independent units, had a special place in the wall decoration of buildings of the so-called Morava art school. It was created in a combination of Byzantine and Western elements where original forms and ways of execution were created, thus forming new entities in a special relationship between architecture and sculpture. They are distinguished by the fullness of form, colourful variety and specific dense and complex ornamentation where various types of geometric interweaving and stylised plant motifs in rhythmic shifts, representations of animals and rarely human figures play the main role. The buildings' facades adorned by these artworks, supplemented by the use of bricks, give a recognisable impression to this authentically Serbian architectural school. The reconstructed rosette carved in a single piece of sandstone, from the western facade of the church built in the centre of Prince Lazar and his heirs' lands, represents a part of a rich plastic find of a special, local variant of the Morava style group, with unusually deep relief. It consists of 14 radially arranged columns composed of different motifs intertwined with double ribbons and areas with rosettes, quadrifolium and cherubs, with visible traces of red pigment, giving a strong impression of depth. The relief of the wreath (archivolt) that surrounds the rosette as a whole, reveals the skill of the master in mastering the technique and material.