Listed 37 sub titles with search on: Places of worship for wider area of: "AGION OROS Mountain HALKIDIKI" .
KARYES (Village) AGION OROS
Tel: +30 23770 23711-3, 23221
Fax: +30 23770 23315
It is a
three-aisle basilica, with its
central aisle on a higher level and an external gallery along the northern side. The tall rectangular bell-tower is built a few meters away from the north-east corner of the church. The marble iconostasis of the church is still in its place, as well as the portable icons painted
by Theophanes, in the mid-16th century, along with the the miraculous
icon of the Virgin "Axion Esti".
The monument, which in its earliest form is dated to the 10th century, has been decorated with
frescoes by the main representative of the so-called Macedonian School, Manuel Panselinos.
Apart from the historic elements of the monument, the
frescoes which
cover practically every wall of the church , are undoubtedly the most brilliant
example of the Paleologean Art, around 1300, whose colours, forms and sentiments
have found their best expression in the hands of the most worthy master of the
period.
The restoration of the monument was carried out by the Archaeological Service during the '50s and '60s, while recently the 10th Ephorate of Byzantine Antiquities completed the conservation of the wall paintings.
The church is in use for the daily worship of the monks who live in
Karyes for more than ten centuries, and it is also used for all the official ceremonies
of the Holy Community.
Karyes has been the seat of the self-governing body of Mount Athos
and the seat of the 'protos' since the 10th century. At that time the settlement
comprised some small older monasteries and the residences of representatives of
distant ones.
Assemblies of the monks were usually held on 15th August, the Virgin's
feast-day, in the Protaton church, the very heart of monasticism on Athos; disputes
between monasteries, mainly about land holdings, were settled there.
Dedicated to the Dormition of the Virgin, the Protaton is a large
triple-aisled basilica with narthex. Built in the 10th century it was repaired
in the reign of Andronikos II Palaeologos (1282-1328). The wall-paintings (circa
1300) have been attributed to Manuel Panselinos; the artist, whoever he was, created
a work that has gained world-wide acclaim in our time.
The extraordinary abundance of painted scenes, free of all abstraction
and featuring exquisite figures that come close to defining the quintessence of
man, give superb material expression to the vision of Palaeologian art.
By kind permission of:Ekdotike Athenon
This text is cited Nov 2003 from the Macedonian Heritage URL below, which contains images.
MONI AGIOU DIONYSSIOU (Monastery) AGION OROS
Tel: +30 23770 23686-7, 23272
Fax: +30 23770 23686
It was built in the middle 14th century by the monk Dionysious of
Koryssos in the Kastoria precinct, with the financial support of the emperor Alexius
III Comnenos of Trapezous. In 1535 the monastery has been destroyed by fire. It
was rebuilt and from then onwards its architecture and buildings remain unaltered.
It is one of the most bold architechtural structures, built on a rock,
high above the sea. Although the inward space is rather limited, there is however
not only the central church, but also several chapels, many of which are wall-painted.
Inside the monastery there is also the defensive tower, built in 1520 and used
periodically for the safe keeping of the monastery΄s library.
The monastery is inhabited today by a new dynamic monastic community,
which has undertaken the redecoration of the old buildings.
The Katholican frescoes dated in 1546 are the work of the painter
Georges, one of the main representatives of the Cretan school in the middle 16th
century. The Refectory΄s frescoes had been executed in two separate phases: in
the middle 16th century and in 1603. The monastery possesses one of the most remarkable
collections of works of art (mainly portable icons) as well as illuminated manus
cripts.
MONI AGIOU PANTELEIMONOS (Monastery) AGION OROS
Tel: +30 23770 23252, 23201
The monastery is built in a bay near the Xenophontos monastery, from
the side of Siggitikos and is dedicated to its namesake Saint. It gives the impression
of a small city with its many-stored buildings and the churches' tall cupolas.
The Katholicon is built in the early 19th c. and its frescoes are typical of the
russian art. The monastery has 15 chapels and 5 kellia, 2 of them at Karyes. The
monastery also owns the Chromitsa metochion, the Bogoroditsa (or the Carpenter's)
Skete, the Nea Thebais or Gournoskete and Paleomonastiro.
In the 13th c. the monastery is burnt and rebuilt with the financial
support of the emperor Andronicus II Paleologus and Serbian rulers. The monastery
knows alternatively periods of prosperity and great misery. The monks are Greek
and Russian, which outnumber the first after 1497. In the 18th c. the monastery
is again in greek hands, only to fall back to the Russians in 1875.
In the monastery there are many portable icons, heirlooms and liturgical
vestments. The library contains 1320 greek and 600 slavic manuscripts and over
20,000 greek and russian books.
The monastery in inhabited by a brotherhood of 40 monks.
MONI AGIOU PAVLOU (Monastery) AGION OROS
Tel: +30 23770 23250, 23609, 23741-4, 23355
Fax: +30 23770 23355
It is situated in the west foot of Athos, 20 min from the sea and
is dedicated in the Presentation of Christ to the temple. The monastery was destroyed
many times by various causes, and its buildings belong to different periods. The
Katholicon was built shortly before the mid 10th c. The monastery has 12 chapels,
the most important of which is that of St George, with frescoes of the Cretan
School (1555). The monastery also possesses the Nea Skete and the Skete of St
Demetrius.
The monastery is mentioned for the first time, in the mid 10th c.,
mostly its founder Pavlos Xeropotaminos, and then in 1259. After the Catalan raids,
it is degraded into a kellion, only to become a monastery again in the 3rd quarter
of the 14th c. In the 15th c. it is financially supported by Serbians rulers and
after the fall of Byzantium, by rulers of eastern Europe.
Among the monastery's possessions, are counted portable icons, heirlooms,
holy relics and liturgical vessels.
The library contains 494 manuscripts and about 12,500 books.
The monastery is inhabited by a brotherhood of 30 monks.
MONI CHELANDARIOU (Monastery) AGION OROS
Tel: +30 23770 23281, 23797, 23494, 23108
Fax: +30 23770 23494
The history of the monastery begins in the 10th century but, after
its ruin, the emperor Alexius III, in 1198 granted it to the Serbian rulers Stefan
Nemanja and his son Rastko, who became monks (Symeon and Sava respectively) who
proseeded to the construction of new buildings. During the 14th century, the monastery
reached its highest peak, accumulating riches and heirlooms from imperial as well
as private donnations.
One of the largest and richest in heirlooms monasteries of the Holy
Mountain, Chelandar is the main spiritual center of the Serbs from the 12th century
onwards. Besides the central church (Katholicon), honoured in the memory of the
Presentation of the Virgin, there are many chapels, the refectory and the aisles
with the monks΄ cells as well as the other auxiliary buildings (guest-house, library
and others).
The present monastic community preserves close relations with the
Serbian people as well as the Greek population of the Holy Mountain and its neighbouring
area.
Apart from the abundance of frescoes (St. George΄s Tower, Katholicon,
old and new Refectory etc), the monastery possesses one of the largest libraries
of Slavonic and Greek manuscripts, as well as a large number of portable icons
dated in the 12th century onwards.
MONI DOCHIARIOU (Monastery) AGION OROS
Tel: +30 23770 23245
It is one of the most elegant and beautiful monasteries of the Holy Mountain, sited by the sea. One sees first the Refectoty (old and new) and ends at the uppermost
point on a high tower which dominates the place. The Katholikon, which is equally
high, has been built over the walls of the older church.
The monastery was founded during the second half of the 10th century;
its foundation is attributed to Euthymios, a pupil of Saint Athanasius of the
Great Lavra, who had the service of the "Docheion" (vessel), which gave the name
to the monastery. The Katholicon and the Refectory were built and decorated with
frescoes in the mid 16th century (1568). The wall-paintings of the Refectory are
dated in 1675 and in 1700 (the northern part).
Apart from the 16th century frescoes in the Katholicon, there are
also important frescoes of the 18th century in the exonarthex, which are excellent
copy of the 14th century from other monuments. Equally remarkable is also the
library of the monastery, where one can find, apart from the most important historic
monuments, abour 900 manuscripts.
The monastery is inhabited by a very active group of monks who take
care of its various needs -especially the hospitality to pilgrims and scholars.
MONI ESFIGMENOU (Monastery) AGION OROS
Tel: +30 23770 23653
Fax: +30 23770 23653
The monastery is built by the sea and surrounded by a rectangular
wall which forms a rathwer spacious courtyard. In the middle one sees the Katholicon
and around, the wings with the monks' cells, the guest-house and the refectory,
which is a semi-detached building in the west wing, west of the Katholicon.
Με το here was always a monastery in existence with this name in the
10th century and apparently flourishing during the byzantine period. It has been
pillaged by pirates many times, but again considerable power after the 18th century.
The Katholicon was built in 1810 in the place of an older church that had been
demolished, while the frescoes were made by the Galatista painters in 1811 and
1818. The monastery's oldest building is the refectory with its frescoes of 16th-17th
centuries.
Apart from the Katholicon and the refectory, the monastery possesses
an excellent collection of Byzantine and postbyzantine icons, among which the
most remarquable is the mosaic icon of Christ. In the library one can see many
rare manuscripts, among which the manuscript no 14 is set out for its remarquable
decoration.
The monastery is inhabited be a large number of energetic monks who
follow strictly the Athonite monastic tradition.
MONI FILOTHEOU (Monastery) AGION OROS
Tel: +30 23770 23256, 23674-9
Fax: +30 23770 23674
The monastery lies in a paltean, a little above the monastery of Karakallou
about 2.5 hrs from Karyes and is dedicated to the Annunciation of the Virgin.
The Katholicon is built shortly before the mid 18th c. and decorated with frescoes
after the mid 18th c. The monastery has eight chapels and 13 kellia, one of them
at Karyes.
The monastery was founded in the last quarter of the 10th c. but only
in the end of the 11th c. takes the form of a monastery. In the end of 13th and
14th c. the monastery receives financial aid by the emperors of Byzantium and
the Serbian rulers. After the fall of the empire, the monastery is financially
supported by the rulers of eastern Europe. In 1871, the monastery with the exception
of the Katholikon, the Refectory and the library, is burnt to the ground.
The monastery owns many heirlooms, holy relics and above all the miraculous
icon of the Virgin Glykophilousa. The library contains 250 manuscripts and many
books.
The monastery is inhabited by a brotherhood of 50 monks.
MONI IVIRON (Monastery) AGION OROS
Tel: +30 23770 23248, 23643-5, 23203
Fax: +30 23770 23248
Third in precedence among the twenty monasteries of the Holy Mountain,
the monastery was built in the end of the 10th century by the Georgian (Iberes)
monks Ioannis and Euthymius in the place where there was before the monastery
of Clement. The 16th century has been a period of prosperity for the monastery,
and, as result, it has been decorated with splendid painting works (the Katholicon
frescoes etc).
Built by the sea, the monastery is surrounded by four aisles, presenting
a rectangular shape. In the center, one sees the central church, founded in the
10th century, as the two historically important chapels, of Panaghia Portaitissa
and of John the Precursor. The largest part of the aisles has been rebuilt during
the 19th century.
A numerous monastic community is in charge of the restoration of the
ruined buildings surrounding the monastery and offers hospitality to scientists
from all the world, who wish to study the historic heirlooms of the monastery.
The monastery΄s feast is on August 15th - day of the dormition of
the Virgin - (August 28th in the New diary) and is celebrated with particular
splendour. Many pilgrims visit the monastery for the legendary miracles of the
Panaghia Portaitissa.
MONI KARAKALOU (Monastery) AGION OROS
Tel: +30 23770 23225, 23279
Fax: +30 23770 23746
The monastery is situated between the monasteries of Great Lavra and
Iviron, on a slope by the sea and is dedicated to St Peter and St Paul. Inside
the fortified enclosure, there is the Katholikon of athonite type, built in mid
16th c. and decorated with frescoes in the early 18th c. The monastery has 7 chapels,
4 Kellia in Karyes, and 14 Kellia in the forest to the S.W. of it.
The monastery is mentioned in documents of 1018 and 1087. In the 13th
c. the monastery is entirely ruined and rebuilt by the emperors Andronic II and
Ioannis V Paleologos. Afterwards the monastery is attacked by Latins and pirates.
In the 16th c. it is completely destroyed and rebuilt with the financial aid of
rulers of Moldavia and Vlachia.
In the monastery, there are many portable icons, holy heirlooms and
ecclesiastical vessels. The library contains 279 manuscripts and about 2,500 books.
MONI KONSTAMONITOU (Monastery) AGION OROS
Tel: +30 23770 23228, 23278
The monastery is situated between the monasteries of Zografou and Dionysiou,
30 min from the sea, in the side of Siggitikos and is dedicated to St Stephen.
The Katholicon is built after the mid 19th c. following the athonite type, over
the ruins of the old Katholicon. The monastery has 9 chapels.
The first mention of the monastery is from the 11th c. In the early
14th c. it is destroyed. Afterwards, its borders are defined by imperial chrysoboula,
and it is financially supported by Serbian rulers. After the fall of the Empire,
the monastery knows alternatively periods of prosperity and great
Perhaps, the most outstanding of the monastery's heirlooms, are the
portable icons of St Stephen, of Virgin Hodegetria and of Virgin Antiphonetria.
There are also reliquaries, ecclesiastical vessels, chrysoboula and others. The
library contains 110 manuscripts and many books.
The monastery is inhabited by a brotherhood of 30 monks.
MONI KOUTLOUMOUSSIOU (Monastery) AGION OROS
Tel: +30 23770 23226
Fax: +30 23770 23731
The monastery buildings are set in a rectangular shape with a rather
vast courtyard, with the central church (Katholicon) in its center. The refectory
is presently built a new (1995), while the central church, built in the 16th century,
is covered with five domes and with a glass covered exonarthex.
The original monastery was built before the 12th century but in the
14th centutry, abbot Chariton of Imvros, receeded to the enlargement of the monastery;
during its lifetime vast destructions were caused either by fire or by fall of
rocks.
Apart from the Katholicon frescoes dated in the mid 16th century,
the monastery possesses more than 600 manuscipts, many of which are illuminated,
as well as imporant historic archive and a large number of old printed books.
IN THE MEDIEVAL TOWNSHIP of Karyes,
with its picturesque houses dominated by the Protaton
Basilica, the mists of winter weigh as heavy as lead, as if they sought to
halt the advance of time. Only with difficulty can one make out the cobbled road
leading out of the town to a green hillside in the direction of Koutloumousi.
The mist drifts close to the ground, caressing the golden-green leaves of the
hazel trees, the slender trunks of the wild chestnuts, "where nature has
striven to offer a unique model of magnificence and beauty of form", the
vines and the olive trees, the variety of ornamental trees which betray the hand
of man among the natural vegetation. From out of this composition of elements
emerges the silent, formidable old guardian of mysteries, the castle wall, from
which in turn rise a lofty defensive tower and domes covered in lead. They stare
out over the Thracian Gulf,
over Samothrace and Imbros
and the summit of Athos itself,
crowned in white snow during the winter months. The pilgrim pauses for a moment
and quenches his thirst at the vaulted fountain, which faces the gate of the Monastery.
It was built in 1816 in the form of a house of prayer. The marble relief of the
conch bears the words: "O Christ the Word, Transfigured, Saviour, have pity
on those who reside herein. "Christ is the life of this place, and its purpose
is to bring heaven to a little parcel of earth, and to prepare men for their future
life as citizens of heaven.
The gateway to the Monastery is a neo-classical structure, with a
fine colonnaded porch. Every period has left its mark here. The iron gate opens
at dawn and is locked at sunset. Passing through the vaulted propylon the pilgrim
enters the courtyard, where a new world stands revealed, the coming together of
the artistic tendencies of a thousand years. Rows of circular arches with decorative
brickwork features, corridors and stairways with windows, all in the graceful
Byzantine style, look out over the paved courtyard. The Monastery is laid out
in the shape of an irregular rectangle. The northern, eastern and southern sides
are occupied by three-story buildings, while against the fortified wall of the
western side stands the Refectory, an L-shaped building constructed of stone.
In the centre of the cluster of buildings, dominating the other structures, stands
the Catholikon (main church), which is the heart of monastic life. It was built
shortly after 1369 and is an enlarged version of the older and smaller church.
It is the first example on Mt.
Athos of the evolved type of Athonite Catholikon.
In a conspicuous point in the courtyard stands the Phiale - an octagon
of marble with relief panels, white columns and, in the centre, a marble font,
where the blessing of the waters takes place. The Phiale was built in 1813 by
a talented sculptor from a workshop on the island
Tinos. A little farther on, opposite the entrance to the Catholikon, stands
the picturesque refectory building. Matthaios, Patriarch of Alexandria built it
in 1767, on the site of the earlier wing, which had been destroyed by fire. It
has recently been renovated and a number of monks are engaged exclusively in the
work of decorating it with paintings.
Within the Church the atmosphere is one of solemn mystery. The elegance
of the surroundings blends perfectly with the seriousness of the occasion: the
baroque wood-carving of the altar screen, with its undulating zones, the whole
surface seeming to vibrate with the rich life of the relief carvings, and the
austere wall-paintings of the Cretan School, dating from the 16th century. We
first pay homage to the icon of the Lord’s Transfiguration, and then that of the
Panagia Stylarini, in which the Virgin enthroned bears the infant Jesus in her
arms. This 14th century miracle-working icon comes from Stylari, in Marmaras,
where there was a dependency of the Monastery. The local people called the icon
"The Healer", for it was said to cure all the ailments of people in
the region around, and was held in great esteem. The annex chapel is the place
of honour of the household icon of the Monastery, the "Fearsome Protection",
painted in the 13th century. The Virgin holds the infant Lord tightly in her embrace,
but His face is turned towards the angel who bears the symbols of the Passion.
When pirates landed here, intent on plunder, by grace of the icon the Monastery
vanished and was spared. Cowering behind barred doors, the monks, their ears ringing
with the clamor of voices and firearms from without the walls, were eventually
amazed to see that the pirates had left empty-handed. Their only victim was a
passer-by whom they had hanged outside the Monastery gate, infuriated at his inability
to tell them where the Monastery had gone. Also to be seen here is the Panagia
Eleousa, from an old dependency in Serres,
long disappeared.
Each afternoon one of the priest-monks brings out the holy relics
to be worshipped. Among them is a piece of the True Cross, the foot of Saint Ann
(Mother of Virgin Mary), untouched by decay, the hand of St. Gregory the Theologian,
the head of St. Alypios, who lived as a hermit for 60 years on a column in the
Paphlagonian desert. These were gifts of the Monastery’s first patron, The Great
Emperor Alexios Komnenos (1081-1118).
ACCORDING TO ONE SCHOOL OF THOUGHT, the founder of the Monastery was
employed in the 11th century in the court of Kutlumus, the head of the Seljuk
dynasty of that name in Asia
Minor. A more likely theory is that the founder is to be sought among the
monastic communities of Palestine
in the 11th century, since in one of the old Arab dialects the word Kutlumus denotes
the church of Christ the Saviour, to Whom the Catholicon of the Monastery has
always been dedicated. The founder of the Monastery was known to later generations
as Saint Koutloumousis, "the Chosen and Beloved of God, that most excellent
in all things and virtuous Koutloumousis", in the words of the Protos Isaac
(14th century). The first signature we have of an abbot of the Koutloumousi Monastery
is to be found in a document of 1169, among the signatures of the representatives
of 28 Athonite monasteries. At that time, and for another hundred years, the Monastery
was in no position to boast of its opulence or its exalted rank in the hierarchy
of the Monasteries. Its economic stagnation was exacerbated by the depredations
of Franks and Catalans during the period of Frankish rule, and by the brutality
of the army of Michael VIII, which descended on Mt.
Athos to enforce the union with the Pope which the Greek Emperor had signed
in Lyons. Tradition has it
that the monks were hanged and their bodies buried behind the Catholikon. Yet
their sacrifice was not in vain. In 1263 the Protos of Mt.
Athos conceded to Koutloumousi the abandoned Monastery of the Prophet Elias,
and later, in 1287, the Monastery
of Stavronikita, at that time in a state of dissolution. The Protos at this
period was an elected official with administrative jurisdiction over the whole
of Mt. Athos. These additions
to the Monastery’s assets, together with the progressive temperament and the spiritual
struggles of the fathers, led to a period of rapid growth for the Monastery.
However, the pirate raids continued. At the most critical period royal
assistance arrived at Koutloumousi in the person of Andronikos II Paleologue,
followed shortly after by Theodora Kantakouzini, who wrote: "To those who
lead a virtuous life and who do battle so nobly and heroically at the monastery
honored with the name of Christ the Saviour, also known as Koutloumousi... I hereby
make a gift of the property in Serres
known as Eleousa, which I purchased from the Holy Monastery of The Savior and
Creator and Pantocrator in Constantinople,
glorious to God", stipulating explicitly that none of the provisions of her
gift should be altered. In exchange she required that her name be commemorated
daily in the holy services and that each year prayers be said for the peace of
her soul. The monastic spirit had penetrated into the royal chambers and had touched
the hearts of those who shared a sense of the more profound meaning of existence.
However, after the fatal blow struck by the Frankish crusaders, the Eastern Roman
Empire never recovered its former economic health. The monks of Mt.
Athos were obliged to seek help elsewhere.
Hariton of Imbros
took over the reins of the Monastery a little before 1362. By vigorous representations
to the rulers of Hungary
and Wallachia he managed to secure financial assistance in restoring the Monastery,
as well as gifts of land. The first benefactors were Alexandros Basarab, and his
successor Ioannis Vladislav. The latter, however, insisted that the abbot should
abolish the cenobitic system and introduce to the Monastery the new idiorrhythmic
rule, which permitted the monks to own personal property and to follow their own
daily programme. Such a system well suited the Wallachian monks, who had no tradition
of monastic life, and who wished to settle at the Monastery, but without adjusting
to the demands of the cenobitic life, with its common spiritual and economic organization.
Hariton wrote that "the cenobitic life is heaven on earth, and the allotted
fate of the fathers". Finally, however, financial hardship left him no alternative
but to yield, in sadness of heart, and to introduce the idiorrhythmic system,
but on the inviolable condition that Koutloumousi should remain a Greek monastery.
Another result of these relations was the profound influence exerted
by the Greek culture on the spiritual life of the Danubian provinces. It was no
coincidence that the Ecumenical Patriarch St. Philotheos Kokkinos appointed Hariton
Metropolitan of Hungary and
Wallachia, while he continued to carry out his duties as abbot of his Monastery.
In 1393 the Patriarch Antonios proclaimed Koutloumousi a Patriarchal
and Stavropegic Monastery. This meant that it now enjoyed the care and protection
of the Patriarch, and was free from interference or influence from any secular
power. A similar freedom was conveyed in the imperial golden bulls, by virtue
of which the Monasteries are honoured with the appellation of "royal".
By and large this privileged status was respected even by the Ottoman rulers.
And so, in the following centuries, the Monastery was free to enjoy a course of
steady growth and prosperity, by 1574 ascending to occupy sixth position in the
hierarchical ranking of the Athonite monasteries.
However, the consequences of the disintegration of the Roman Empire
were not easy to bear: an economic crisis brought on by the burden of taxation
and the confiscation of monastic estates, a decline in the number of monks. Fortunately
in due course the Monasteries succeeded in placing all their civil affairs under
the direct authority of the Sultan. At the same time Koutloumousi was able to
maintain enclaves of the faith and rallying points for the enslaved Greek people
at its dependencies in Serres,
on Andros, Imbros,
Samos, Limnos,
at Marmaras, in Sithonia, Crete
and even in Slatina in Romania.
Monks were also dispatched as priests to serve the thriving Greek communities
of central Europe. During the 17th and 18th centuries the Monastery had to rely
exclusively on the support of pious Greeks. The end of the 18th century brought
distinction to the Monastery in the work of the most distinguished figure in the
modern history of Koutloumousi, the scholar Bartholomew of Imbros,
teacher and editor of the liturgical books.
In the mid-19th century the Monastery was subjected to a new ordeal,
owing to the new expansionist policy of the Russians. An attempt was made in 1856
by instruments of the new Russian policy to impose a Russian identity on the Monastery.
Their plans, which had succeeded at the Monastery of St. Panteleimon, came to
nothing in the case of Koutloumousi, thanks to the indivisible sense of fellowship
binding the monks. This year was a milestone for another reason, too: as the result
of a unanimous petition addressed by the monks to the Ecumenical Patriarch, the
Monastery returned to its original cenobitic rule. It was at this time that a
fire reduced the northern wing of the Monastery to ashes. The priest-monk Meletios,
distinguished for his virtue and administrative talents, travelled with the blessing
of the Patriarchate as far as Russia,
western Europe and even America, with letters from the Monastery seeking financial
support. He was successful enough to be able to finance the restoration of the
northern wing, but his project of a further construction was interrupted by his
demise.
In the wake of the Second World War the Monastery was afflicted by
an alarming decline in the number of monks. The ravages of time and the almost
total loss of the Monastery’s assets in land, jeopardized its very existence.
But eventually the will of God manifested itself in the survival and gradual recovery
of the Monastery’s fortunes. It has not of course been a road entirely without
obstacles and setbacks: in 1980 the eastern wing was burned, while torrential
rains caused landslides and cracks in the Monastery buildings. But God never subjects
us to temptation and trial without providing also the necessary patience to endure,
and to await the final happy outcome.
THE DAYS AND NIGHTS of the monks are divided between communal worship,
private prayer and study, the chores of the Monastery and relaxation, the latter
determined with reference to the stamina of the individual. The monk’s striving
for oneness with God commences each day at 2 in the morning, in his cell; at 3
am the service in church begins: Midnight Prayers, Matins, Hours, Divine Liturgy.
The life of worship follows a ritual pattern established over the centuries and
adjusted to the particular conditions of each Monastery.
THE MONASTERY COMMUNITY today numbers thirty monks, while some forty
others live in the dependencies of the Monastery. Despite numerous trials and
tribulations, and thanks to the support of pious Christians, the Monastery is
now on the road of recovery. The new innovations are still guided by the spirit
of the traditional rules, while the future of the Monastery is now confronted
with a new dynamism, inspired by the spirit of renewal at work in the Orthodox
Tradition. The icon painters in the Monastery workshop continue to follow the
Byzantine models of the Cretan School. And the old art of calligraphy is still
cultivated, faithful to the old tradition, as far as the daily workload of the
monks permits. Meanwhile the Monastery, as we pass through a time which tends
to ignore the life of the spirit, has been at work building bridges by means of
which the Orthodox message can be conveyed, offering old wine in new bottles.
First and foremost, however, it perseveres in its main task, that of prayer, the
liturgical and mystical reference of all things to God.
This text is cited Apr 2003 from the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople URL below.
MONI MEGISTIS LAVRAS (Monastery) AGION OROS
Tel: +30 23770 23761, 23277
Fax: +30 23770 23762
It was built in 963 by St. Athanasius the Athonite, with the financial support of the emperors Nikephorus Phocas and Ioannis Tzimiskes. During the ten centuries of its existence, the monastery has always held the first place among the other monasteries of the Holy Mountain, partly because of its wealth, partly because of the heirlooms stored there (manuscripts, historic documents, chrysobulls, portable icons etc).
The monumental structure of the
monastery complex
is particularly noticed in its
large buildings.
The central church (the Katholicon)
with the two large chapels of the Forty Martyrs and of St. Nicholas, occupies the center of the monastery. Within the enclosure, there is also the refectory, the kitchen, the library etc. In the four aisles, which surround the monastery, are the monks cells, the guest-house,
chapels and others.
The monastery is inhabited by 50 monks whose daily occupations are
divided among their monastic duties (mass,prayers etc.) and the hospitality to
the many visitors from all the world.
The monastery remains open throughout the year from sunrise until sunset. During the winter months, it is extremely difficult to reach the monastery. The visitors who wish to study or take photographs of the monastery΄s works of art, must first contact the 10th Ephorate of Byzantine Antiquities as well as the monastery itself.
MONI OSSIOU GRIGORIOU (Monastery) AGION OROS
Tel: +30 23770 23218, 23669
Fax: +30 23770 23671
The monastery is built by the sea, in the S.W. side of the peninsula,
between the monasteries of Dionysiou and Simonopetra and is dedicated to St Nicholas.
The Katholicon is built and painted after the mid 18th c. The monastery has 10
chapels and 4 kellia in Karyes.
The monastery is built during the 14th c Afterwards, there is very
little information of it. The Russian pilgrims Barsky (18th c.) reports that the
monastery was restarted in 1500, is the smallest of the monasteries, and almost
all the heirlooms and the documents were lost in the fire of 1761. The monastery
is finally rebuilt with the financial aid of the princes of Moldavia and Valachia.
Inside the Katholicon are kept many heirlooms and portable icons,
the most outstanding of which are those of St Nicholas, of Virgin Galaktotropousa
and of Virgin Pantanassa.
In the library there are 297 manuscripts, about 4,000 books and many
documents.
The monastery is inhabited by a brotherhood of 70 monks.
MONI PANTOKRATOROS (Monastery) AGION OROS
Tel: +30 23770 23253, 23685, 23880
Fax: +30 23770 23685
The monastery is built by the sea, in the N.E. side of the peninsula
and is dedicated to the Transfiguration of the Saviour. The Katholicon follows
the athonite type and has frescoes of the 14th c. that were painted over in 1845.
The monastery has 15 chapels, the most important of which is that of the Dormition
of Virgin. Among the Kellia of the monastery, the most important are of the Ravdouchou,
possibly of the 10th c. and the Dormition of the Virgin, named Axion Esti after
the namesake icon. The Skete of Prophet Elias belongs also to the monastery.
The monastery's founders were two byzantine officials, Alexios and
Ioannis, who in mid 14th c. with the support of the emperor Ioannis 5th Paleologus,
transformed their cell into a monastery. After the fall of the empire, the monastery
is financially supported by rulers of eastern Europe. Two destructive fires took
place in 1773 and recently in 1948.
The monastery possesses a large collection of portable icons, ecclesiastical
vessels and heirlooms, while in the library there are 350 manuscripts and over
3,500 books.
The monastery is inhabited by a brotherhood of 25 monks.
MONI SIMONOS PETRAS (Monastery) AGION OROS
Tel: +30 23770 23254
Fax: +30 23770 21014
The seven-stored monastery of Simonopetra is the most bold construction
of the peninsula, and is dedicated to the birth of Christ. The name comes from
the founder of the monastery, Hosios Simon, who lived in Athos in the mid 14th
c.The Katholicon was built after the last fire and has no frescoes. The monastery
has 15 chapels and 5 Kellia in Karyes.
At the end of 16th c. the monastery is burnt down, rebuilt and reburnt
in the beginning of the 17th c. This long period of decline is interrupted by
shorts periods of prosperity. At the end of the last century, the monastery is
one more time burnt, and rebuilt with funds from Russia.
Among the monastery's heirlooms, the most important is a piece of
Saviour's Cross, holy reliquaries and others. The library, after the last fire,
possesses only a few modern manuscripts and books.
The monastery is inhabited by a brotherhood of 60 monks.
MONI STAVRONIKITA (Monastery) AGION OROS
Tel: +30 23770 23255
Fax: +30 23770 23255
It is one of the smallest monasteries of the Holy Mountain following
however the traditional architecture, with the Katholicon in the middle, the Refectory
on the first floor of the southern wing and many chapels as well as a built aqueduct
which supplies the monastery with water. South of the Katholicon rises the defensive
tower, while around the monastery there are several auxiliary buildings and the
arsenal.
The Patriarch Jermiah I founded the monastery in 1540, in the place
of an older monastery which was already in existence in the beginning of the 11th
century. The Patriarch also caused to be built the Katholicon, which its frescoes
as well as the refectory and the chapel of St John the Precursor with their frescoes.
Several restorations have been made during the 18th century as well as presently.
The monastery's library possesses a large number of richly illuminated
manuscripts and liturgical scrolls. Apart from the frescoes in the Katholicon
and the refectory, in Theophane's group of pupils is also attributed the Dodekaorton
icons, while the mosaic icon of St Nicholas is one of the rarest examples of this
kind.
These last years, the monastery was almost entirely restored by the
Archaeological Service.
A large number of active monks inhabits today the monastery and provides
for the resatoration of the buildings as well as the hospitality to pilgrims and
scholars.
MONI VATOPEDIOU (Monastery) AGION OROS
Tel: +30 23770 41488, 23283
Fax: +30 23770 41462
The monastery was built during the second half of the 10th century,
by three monks, Athanasius, Nicholas and Antonius from Adrinople, who were the
pupils of St. Athanasius of Lavra. From then onwards several buildings have been
constructed, but the most important ones, were those built during the Byzantine
period, and on the 18th as well as the 19th century, when the monastery reached
its highest peak.
It is a large monumental monastery surrounded by a tall wall, with
its buildings set on Triangle. Inside the spacious courtyard, there is the central
church, the cross-formed refectory and several chapels. Inside the central church
one can see the only existing mosaics in the Holy Mountain, while its frescoes,
painted around 1312, are attributed to the painter Manuel Panselinos from Thessaloniki.
About 50 monks live today in the monastery, where is applied an extensive
construction project in order to restore the larger buildings.
Apart from the frescoes and the masaics, the monastery has in its
possession a large number of unique portable icons, manuscripts and religious
objects.
It is open to all the world scientists, which, however, must first
contact the monastery and the 10th Ephorate of Byzantine Antiquities.
MONI XENOFONTOS (Monastery) AGION OROS
Tel: +30 23770 23249, 23633
Fax: +30 23770 23631
It is built by the sea, between the monasteries of Docheiariou
and St Panteleimonos,
and is dedicated to St George. The Katholicon is built in the early 18th c. and
has no frescoes. In the old Katholicon, there are remarkable frescoes of the Cretan
painter Antonius (1544) as well as the wooden-curved templum of the 17th c. The
monastery possesses 14 chapels, 8 of which are inside the monastery.
The monastery is mentioned for the first time in the last quarter
of the 11th c. Its period of prosperity is interrupted by the fall of Constantinople.
Afterwards, the monastery is alternatively destroyed and rebuilt with the financial
aid from the rulers of eastern Europe.
Among the heirlooms of the monastery, the most prized are the two
mosaic icons with the Transfiguration of Christ, ecclesiastical vessels and others.
In the library there are 300 manuscripts, various documents and over 4,000 books.
The monastery is inhabited by a brotherhood of 35 monks.
MONI XIROPOTAMOU (Monastery) AGION OROS
Tel: +30 23770 23251, 23733
Fax: +30 23770 23733
The monastery is in the middle of the athonite peninsula, on the way
from Daphne to Karyes and is dedicated to the 40 Martyrs. The Katholicon was built
in 1761 by the monk Caesarius Daponte and decorated with frescoes in 1783. The
monastery has several chapels and a few kellia.
The monastery was founded in the end of 10th c., possibly by the monk
Pavlos Xeropotaminos, and prospered till the Frankish conquest, when it is attacked
and sacked by pirates. In the late Byzantine period it is financially supported
by the Paleologan dynasty as well as Serbian rulers. After the fall of Byzantium,
the turkish raids, and two destructive fires in 1507 and 1609, cause serious damages
to the monastery.
The monastery owns a rich collection of heirlooms, the most outstanding
of which, is the largest in the world piece of the Christ's Cross, as well as
a small round steatite icon, known as the Pulcheria Disk.
The library contains about 400 manuscripts and 4,000 books.
The monastery is inhabited by a brotherhood of 30 monks.
MONI ZOGRAFOU (Monastery) AGION OROS
Tel: +30 23770 23273, 23247
The monastery is situated on a slope of the S.W. part of the peninsula
and is dedicated to St George. The Katholicon was built in the beginning of the
last century and follows the athonite type. The monastery has eight chapels inside
and eight chapels outside of it. The monastery also owns two workshops in Karyes
and the Kelliou of Transfiguration.
The monastery was founded, according to tradition, in the 10th c.
by three brothers, Moses, Aaron and Ioannis from Achris. In the Late Byzantine
period, the monastery is destroyed by Catalan pirates and rebuilt with the financial
support of the Paleologan dynasty, as well as that of rulers of eastern Europe.
Initially, the monastery was inhabited by Bulgarians, Greeks and Serbs. Since
1845 there are only Bulgarian monks.
Besides two miraculous icons of St George and other two of the Virgin
of the Akathistos and the Virgin Epakouousa, the monastery owns and other heirlooms
and ecclesiastical vessels.
The library contains 126 greek and 388 slavic manuscripts, and over
8,000 books.
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