In the History of Greece post, we gave general information. Here is some more specific information that is significant to today’s post. Crete was one of the areas that the Venetians won when they conquered Constantinople in 1204, and the Venetians ruled until 1669, when the Ottoman Turks wrested control of Crete from them. In 1821, Crete joined in the Greek war for independence, but Crete remained under the control of the Ottomans until 1898. During the 1800’s, there were numerous rebellions by the Greeks. Many Christian churches and monasteries hid the rebels, and in the mid 1800’s, the Ottomans began destroying these religious institutions in an effort to squash the rebellions. They also killed many clergymen, believing them to be ringleaders of the rebels.
This morning Costas took John and us to visit the Monastery of Atali, devoted to John the Baptist, on the hills above the town of Bali. The Greek word “monasterion” means “place for doing something alone”. In the Greek Orthodox religion, monastaries are a community of either men or women who devote themselves to serving God and choose to live apart from the secular community. They are the original commune, where everyone lives and works together in service to God. They are generally built in out of the way places.
The exact date the Monastery of Atali was established is unknown, but it was during the Byzantine period. The monastery was renovated in 1635, under the Venetians. In the mid 1800’s, it was partially destroyed by the Turks and all of the monks were murdered. The monastery continued to exist quietly in its partially destroyed condition until 1941, when the last of the monks died. It sat vacant for 40 years, where it was looted and the forces of nature continued to erode the buildings. In 1983, Father Anthimos and the Department of Byzantine Antiquities began restoring it.
As we pulled up to the monastery, we were impressed by the beautiful, lush gardens. A few low, stone buildings were barely visible behind the array of trees and bushes.
The garden completely covers the grounds. It is quiet and serene, and with all the foliage surrounding you, and as you walk around, you definitely feels as if you are in a tranquil oasis. Most of the buildings and retaining walls were made from stone. The first picture is one of the walls from the original Byzantine structure. Look at how small the door is! You can tell it is Byzantine because the door jamb has asymmetrical rocks and a wooden lintel. The second photo is of a building with a Venetian façade, which was obviously built or remodeled in 1635.
The only building that we actually went inside was the church. The other buildings are housing and communal rooms actively in use by the monks, and we didn’t want to intrude. We don’t have a photo of the exterior of the church on the grounds, but it is built in the domed Byzantine style, like most churches in Greece. We didn’t take very good notes, so we are not sure if the original church was destroyed by the Ottomans, and the church now standing is a replica or if the church was only partially destroyed and has been rehabilitated. We went inside the tiny, round church. Like most churches in Greece, it is decorated with images of Jesus, Mary and the various saints in post-Byzantine style artwork. The photo below gives you a sense of what the style of art looks like. It is hard to see in this photo, but the stone walls have a beautiful, ornately carved wooden façade covering them. There were several gold crosses, gold candle holders, and golden chandeliers in the small room.
After visiting the church, we went to a shady patio area and enjoyed the view of Bali below us.
After about a half hour hanging out on the patio, it was time to go. Koralia’s parents were making lunch for us. Everyone promised us it would be an amazing meal”¦.
To be continued…
[152]