The Monastery of the Mother of God is located in the picturesque area of the Sićevačka Klisura Gorge, in the foothill of the rocky Kusača Hill. The Monastery complex consists of the church dedicated to the Presentation, restored in 1575, the monastery dormitory dating from 1880 and completely restored in 1994, a drinking fountain from 1883, the bell tower with two bells built in 1880, the new dormitory constructed in 1970 without reference to any particular style, as well as two recently built auxiliary objects. It was built and painted in 1644, during the office of the senior monk Jovan, by the help of the founder Veselin and his brothers Simeon and Živko, as written in the founder’s inscription on the western wall of the naos.

According to a legend, on the left bank of the Nišava River there used to be a much older monastery of The Presentation in the Temple, which was ruined by the Turks, and the present Mother of God's monastic church was subsequently built out of the remaining building material. The memory of the previous monastery is preserved in the dedication of the church. Shortly after, the new church was devastated by the Turks. The Monastery was deserted until 1875, when the church was restored and the dormitory built thanks to the priest Peter. The same destiny struck the church during the World War I. The plundered and desecrated Monastery of the Mother of God restored its former splendor by the tireless efforts of Prior Porfirije. The church was reconstructed in 1921. The same year, Professor Vasilije Rudanovski made certain interventions he had considered necessary in the total former fresco decoration of the Monastery, following the old-style painting manner. He is also the author of the icons for the iconostasis.

The Mother of God's Church is a modest single-nave building with a semicircular apse at the east end and a small, originally open, parvis at the west end. The Church is vaulted by a longitudinal semi-cylindrical vault, which is supported by lateral molded pilaster-propped arches. It is covered with a gable roof, and built of well-arranged rubble stone and ashlar, with bricks used here and there. The temple is entered from its west side, through once open porch made of three arcades on bricked pillars. The middle arcade is the entrance, while the lateral ones are now glazed. Above the entrance, there is a two-layered niche, in which the traces of color may be observed. After the restoration in 1875, the western faзade was frescoed, as the preserved fresco fragments above the niche confirm. The entrance, finished by an architrave above which there is a two-layered niche, leads from the parvis to the naos.

The interior fresco decoration is arranged in the manner customary for churches painted in the period of Turkish reign. The parvis contains scenes from the Mother of God's Akathistos Cycle, while there is the medallion of the Mother of God with Christ in the vault. The first zone of the naos is reserved for the standing figures of saints, above which there are the round medallions containing the portraits of saint persons. In the second zone, scenes from the Dodecaorton and Jesus' Passion are merged. So, the Procession of Archpriests and the Communion of Apostles are on the east wall, the Mother of God Greater than Heaven is in the conch, and the Pentecost and Annunciation are on the triumphal arch. The following scenes are on the south wall: The Birth of Christ, The Visitation of the Virgin, The Baptism of Christ and The Resurrection of Lazarus. The west wall is dedicated to the Mother of God: The Nativity of the Virgin Mary, The Assumption and the Source of Life; above, in the vault arching segment, there is the Last Supper. Jesus' Entry into Jerusalem, Christ Before Pilate, Crucifixion, Women at The Christ's Sepulcher and the Descent into Hades are presented on the north wall. The vault areas are taken up by the portraits of prophets, the personifications of evangelists, and by three images of Christ: Emmanuel, Pantocrator and the Eternal.

The bright and poor coloring is compensated by correct drawing which does not seem imposed in spite of being emphasized. The fresco decoration in the Mother of God's Monastery is based on the artistic traditions of Serbia and neighboring regions from the 14th to the end of the 16th century. Such eclecticism may be regarded as a typical mid-17th century characteristic by its artistic values and iconographical details. The arrangement of elements depended on the artist’s abilities and talent. The choice of topics and manner of their representation shows the cultural tradition of this region, but the aesthetic taste of the purchaser, as well.

The Monastic Church of St. Mother of God is the unique temple in the whole Niš region which is completely preserved by the concurrence of unknown events from the period of Turkish occupation. With its visual-art characteristics, it is an indisputable testimony of creative accomplishments and artistic comprehension of the population in this area. This proves its significance for the region of Nis, but also for the Serbian history of art. By its historical and artistic characteristics, the Church of St. Mother of God fulfills the gap in the post-Byzantine art in the Balkans, in which the region of Niš takes a significant place.

Mother of God’s Monastery in the Sićevačka Klisura Gorge