Kaisariani Monastery

Abstract

The mesmerizing frescoes of the Kaisariani Monastery, which date to the 18th century. The central figure is Christ Pantokrator, a common motif decorating the central domes of Orthodox Churches. -MA

Description

The following is the entry on the monastery in the Oxford Dictionary of Byzantium: "(Καισαριανή), monastery on Mt. Hymettos near Athens. In antiquity probably a sanctuary of Aphrodite, the site was converted to Christian use in the 5th or 6th C. The monastery must date to ca.1100, when the surviving church was built; it is mentioned in the correspondence of Pope Innocent III (T. Neroutsos, DIEE 3 [1889] 103–05) but apparently remained in Greek hands after the Fourth Crusade since in 1210 Michael Choniates addressed a letter to its Orthodox hegoumenos (Mich.Akom. 2:311). The katholikon is a cross-in-square with half-hexagonal apses; south of the church is a bath, apparently contemporary with the katholikon but later turned into an oil press. The narthex and frescoes in the katholikon, along with the other buildings of the monastery, are post-Byzantine. To the west are the remains of a large early Christian basilica with semicircular apses, over which a smaller domed church was built, apparently in the 10th–11th C. To the south of this are the ruins of a single-aisled church, probably built during the Frankish period."

References

Gregory, Timothy E. "Kaisariane." In The Oxford Dictionary of Byzantium. : Oxford University Press, 1991. https://www.oxfordreference.com/view/10.1093/acref/9780195046526.001.0001/acref-9780195046526-e-2705

Image Notes

Creation date unknown. Photograph processed August 1960. Formerly catalogued as B22.040. Notes written on the slide or index: Hymettus.

Curator Notes

Compare with other Christ Pantokrator paintings at Daphne (W.032), Meteora (DK.064,DK.113), and Hosios Loukas (DM.045)

Identifier W.040
Location Mt Hymettus, Greece
Year 1960
Batch Stamp AUG 60N
Printed Date August, 1960
Index Notes Hymettus
General Location Holy Monastery of Kaisariani