11/19/2024
Colonel Nikolay Raevsky on a commemorative postage stamp
In honour of the 185th anniversary of the birth of Colonel Nikolay Raevsky, one of the 3,500 Russian volunteers who came in 1876 to fight for the liberation of the Serbian people in the Serbian-Turkish War, the Post of Serbia published on November 18 an issue of commemorative postage stamps entitled "Serbia - Russia: 185 years since the birth of Colonel Nikolay Raevsky".
The philatelic issue dedicated to one of the most striking figures in the long history of Serbian and Russian friendship was presented by Bojana Nikolić, Director of the Services and Sales Function at the Post of Serbia, as part of yesterday's visit by Minister of Culture Nikola Selaković to the Monastery of Saint Roman in Đunis and the Church of the Holy Trinity in Gornji Adrovac.
The Church of the Holy Trinity in Gornji Adrovac, built in 1903 at the site of the death of Colonel Nikolay Nikolayevich Raevsky, was visited by Minister Nikola Selaković with Metropolitan Arsenije of Niš, Director of the Russian House Evgeny Baranov and President of the Municipality of Aleksinac Dalibor Radičević. A memorial service for Raevsky was served in the Monastery of St. Roman and a meeting was held at which it was agreed to continue the work on the renovation of the Church of the Holy Trinity, dedicated to Raevsky, who was immortalized by Leo Nikolaevich Tolstoy in the famous novel "Anna Karenina" in the character of Count Vronsky.
Minister Selaković announced the completion of the church's renovation by 2026, which marks the 150th anniversary of the beginning of the First Serbian-Turkish War and the 150th anniversary of the death of Colonel Raevsky. Nikolić spoke about the motives for publishing this philatelic issue and a postage stamp as another symbol of memory of and gratitude to Raevsky and the Russian volunteers from 1876 to 1878.
Professional cooperation in the realization of the commemorative postage stamp issue was provided by the Russian House in Belgrade and the brotherhood of the Monastery of St. Roman. The artistic realization of the issue is the work of Nadežda Skočajić, academic graphic artist and the creator of the stamps for the Post of Serbia.