Old Printed Books as Artistic Templates in Post-Byzantine Art of Montenegro – New Examples and Interpretations

Old printed books marked a specific period in post-Byzantine art in Montenegro. Despite some resistance from church dignitaries of the Peć Patriarchate towards printed books, they served as artistic templates for old masters of the 16th and 17th centuries when decorating the walls of monasteries and churches, icons, miniatures, goldsmithing, and artistic embroidery. A significant number of examples of direct or indirect influence of old printed books have long been observed in the territory of present-day Montenegro. The iconographers, such as priest Strahinja from Budimlje, Andrija Raičević, Jovan, and Radul, who were among the main figures of Montenegrin post-Byzantine art, used illustrations from printed books as artistic templates. In monasteries throughout Montenegro, where local masters left some of the finest artistic works from the post-Byzantine period of Southeastern Europe, several new examples have been observed, which can with more or less certainty be assumed to have originated directly or indirectly through graphic illustrations from old printed books.