The Diocese of Moravska: The later Diocese of Braničevo and the newly-found seal of Nikola, The Bishop of Moravska, from Svrljig

Abstract

The bilingual inscription on the reverse of the seal of Nikola, the bishop of Moravska, recently found in a medieval suburb of Svrljig, was read and its content and representation of Saint Nicholas on the obverse were analysed in the paper. This resulted in new and important facts about the Serbian Principality of Morava and its diocese which was renamed in 1020. The Byzantine conquest led to addressing the "tema" of Morava, renaming of the diocese and transferring the throne from the town of Morava to the town of Braničevo. Consequently, it was concluded in the paper that this seal had been on Bishop Nikola's letter sent to a fellow monk from Svrljig in the second half of the 10th century or at the beginning of the 11th century.