The Church of the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul stands among the graves of Nikšić’s old city cemetery, at the foot of Petrova Glavica and only a short distance from the much larger Cathedral Church of Saint Basil of Ostrog. I think it’s fair to say that it looks quite beautiful and the chance to see the foundations as we approached added to my excitement. I should probably get out more. Anyway, its exact age has long been disputed, with traditions placing its origins as early as the ninth or as late as the twelfth century, which seems rather a large gap to me.
Recent archaeological work, however, points towards a later date, suggesting that the present church probably originated during the fourteenth century before being altered and extended several times. It is considered one of the most important surviving monuments from medieval Onogošt, the settlement from which modern Nikšić developed.
At the western end is the tall stone bell tower, which also forms the entrance porch. This is one of the newest parts of the building, having been added towards the end of the nineteenth century after Nikšić was liberated from Ottoman rule. Unfortunately, the door was firmly locked when we visited, so this was as close as I came to conducting a detailed ecclesiastical inspection.
Internally, there are apparently fragments of historically important wall paintings which have survived, including depictions of the prophet Aaron, King Solomon holding a model of the Temple of Jerusalem, the Annunciation, the Communion of the Apostles and Christ Pantocrator.
What particularly interested me was that the ground had been excavated around parts of the church, exposing the lower walls and foundations normally hidden beneath the surface. Systematic archaeological investigations began in November 2025, partly to establish the sequence of the church’s different construction phases and partly to help address persistent damp which threatened the surviving paintings inside. The masonry clearly changes as it descends, with larger dressed blocks giving way to rougher stonework around the foundations. It is unusual to be able to see quite so directly how a historic building meets the ground, rather than having to accept on trust that it has foundations somewhere underneath. I’m not sure that Jonathan was quite as excited by the sight of exposed medieval rubble, though.
The excavation was especially noticeable beside this doorway, where the ground had been dug away to reveal the uneven courses of stone beneath the threshold. Archaeologists have identified several distinct phases of construction, while medieval monumetal, or stećak, tombstones were reused in parts of its walls and foundations. I might not have been able to see inside the church, but being allowed an unusually close look underneath it felt like a reasonable consolation prize.