The Church of Saint Mark the Evangelist is one of the important religious buildings in the area of Vau Dejës. It was the cathedral church of the Diocese of Deja. Built on the mountain of the same name near the castle, it has served the local community as a pilgrimage destination. The exact date of its construction is not known, but the year 1455 is written on the eastern gate. It is mentioned in various documents of the Middle Ages together with the castle of Danja. It is a church built with the typical techniques of the time, with stone walls and floors and a wooden construction roof.
On the walls of the church, the different periods of the restoration of the church can be distinguished, from the lower part to the roof. The floor is paved with rough stone slabs while the lower part of the walls is built with polished stone, bound with lime. In the upper part, the wall continues with hewn stone blocks, lined up in a regular form, connected between them with mortar. In different parts of the wall there are traces of plastering.
April 25th is celebrated as Saint Mark’s Day and on this occasion the mass dedicated to this saint of the Catholic Church is also celebrated. Frequently, this church is the destination of the Via Crucis celebrated on the eve of Easter.
Even this church could not escape the atheistic cultural revolution of 1967, at which time the object was abandoned and the communist state did not allow worshippers to approach it. Over time, the church was damaged, losing the roof, but fortunately, the walls were saved. The church was restored in 2011 and got its present appearance after this restoration.
