Wall painting (detail) Sopocani monastery, ca. 1265. Like numerous others fresco paintings in Serbian monasteries, this one shows signs of vandalism by the Ottoman Turks: the invading force, in an attempt to erase the native population's cultural heritage, often defaced portraits in a simple and symbolic way: by gouging out their eyes. Many of these paintings have been discovered only in the last several decades, when efforts accelerated to remove the layers of plaster that the Ottomans also frequently used to cover them. "The deathbed of Queen Mother Anna Dandolo", wall painting (detail) Sopocani monastery (detail), ca. 1265. Already with streaks of white in his beard, a bereaved King Uros pays respects to his mother, along with family members and state officials. Wall painting (detail) Sopocani monastery, ca. 1275. This portrait of an aging, white-bearded founder of the famed monastery with its model in hand was probably completed shortly before his death. Author: Radmilo Bozinovic rasha@serbianunity.net