Kovilje Monastery dedicated to Archangel Gabriel, is a monastery

Monastery

Monastery denotes the building, or complex of buildings, that houses a room reserved for prayer as well as the domestic quarters and workplace of monastics, whether monks or nuns, and whether living in community or alone .Monasteries may vary greatly in size – a small dwelling accommodating only...

 of the Serbian Orthodox Church

Serbian Orthodox Church

The Serbian Orthodox Church is one of the autocephalous Orthodox Christian churches, ranking sixth in order of seniority after Constantinople, Alexandria, Antioch, Jerusalem, and Russia...

, located in the village of Kovilje

Kovilje

Kovilje is a village in the municipality of Ivanjica, Serbia. According to the 2002 census, the village has a population of 15 people....

, in the municipality of Ivanjica

Ivanjica

Ivanjica is a town and municipality located in the Moravica District of Serbia. The population of the town is 11,810, while population of the municipality is 32,047....

, in south-west Serbia

Serbia

Serbia , officially the Republic of Serbia , is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeast Europe, covering the southern part of the Carpathian basin and the central part of the Balkans...

 belonging to the Žiča

Žica

Žiča is an early 13th century Serb Orthodox monastery near Kraljevo, Serbia. The monastery, together with the Church of the Holy Dormition, was built by the first King of Serbia, Stefan the First-Crowned and the first Head of the Serbian Church, Saint Sava....

 Diocese. It is sited between Golija

Golija

Golija is a mountain in southwestern Serbia, between towns of Ivanjica and Novi Pazar. It belongs to the Dinaric mountain range. The mountain is heavily forested, with significant biodiversity and it hosts the Golija-Studenica Biosphere Reserve, the first UNESCO-MAB registered biosphere reserve in...

 and Javor

Javor (Serbia)

Javor is a mountain in central Serbia, between towns of Sjenica and Ivanjica. Its highest peak Vasilin vrh has an altitude of 1519 meters above sea level....

 mountains, in the Nošnica river valley. The monastery has two churches, one built partly in a cave

Cave

A cave or cavern is a natural underground space large enough for a human to enter. The term applies to natural cavities some part of which is in total darkness. The word cave also includes smaller spaces like rock shelters, sea caves, and grottos.Speleology is the science of exploration and study...

 and dedicated to the Archangel Gabriel, the other, added later, dedicated to St. Nicholas.

The monastery was founded in the 12th century. The first written reference to it is in 1606, in the "Kruševačkom Pomeniku". It was rebuilt in 1644 by Archbishop Gavrilo (Rašković). Records from 1733 mention it as an educational establishment.

The hegumen

Hegumen

Hegumen, hegumenos, igumen, or ihumen is the title for the head of a monastery of the Eastern Orthodox Church or Eastern Catholic Churches, similar to the one of abbot. The head of a convent of nuns is called hegumenia or ihumenia . The term means "the one who is in charge", "the leader" in...

 of the monastery is the young Serbian Orthodox Hieromonk Amvrosije. He lives there by himself with his tamed animals of two wolves, a fox, an eagle, a snake, raven, rabbit and an owl. The Serb-American community of Libertyville have gifted the monastery with a motorcycle and 4-wheel-drive. The life of the monastery has been documented in the Serbian documentary "Monah i vuk".