JOVAN DI SKOPJE INVIATO DI STEFANO DUŠAN SUL MONTE ATHOS NEL 1346 (E L’AER-EPITAPHIOS DI CHILANDAR)

The first part of this article is devoted to the weeks following Stephen Dušan’s coronation as emperor (April 16, 1346) and the documents that were issued to the monasteries on Mount Athos on that occasion. It also deals with the metropolitan of Skopje Jovan, who was a central figure for the Serbian ruler’s relations with the Holy Mountain at this stage. The metropolitan must have been on Mount Athos as plenipotentiary of the sovereign in 1346 (spring-summer?), shortly after the chryso - bulls and in connection with their issuance, since these documents transmit his name in the dorsal notes. The second part of this article is devoted to a well-known piece, the aer-epitaphios from the Chilandar monastery. The artifact was donated as a votive offering to the monastery of Chilandar by Jovan of Skopje himself during his stay on Mount Athos in 1346, after his elevation to metropolitan and protothronos of Skopje.