Posts in category: Δύο Ήρωες Προστάτες 2 – Ξενοφώντος

A physical reminder of St Demetrios and his martyrdom in the Roman Agora of Thessaloniki is a relic of his blood, which is safeguarded in the Monastery, along with the many other relics in its possession.

The most important elements connecting the protector with the Monastery has been left for last: His relics, which evoke his physical presence in the Monastery in a striking way. The Monastery has a part of the Saint's right hand and cranium in their treasury of relics.

Tradition surrounds the image with accounts of miraculous escapes from destruction during the iconoclasm, when the jaw of the saint's image was damaged by a soldier and bled. It then arrived miraculously at the beach of the Monastery, at the point where there is a spring of sacred water (known as the 'sour water'). The icon's characterization of the saint as Dysuritis is attributed to this spring of sacred water, which is considered to be a remedy for dysuria, albeit soundly reminiscent of the 'diasoritis' accompanying St Georgios in Naxos.

St Georgios is depicted in a large-scale picture, probably of the early 15th century, in the new cathedral. The inscription ttributes to the saint the rare epithet Dysuritis (i.e. one who has an a urological problem). Sitting on a throne, he receives the crown of martyr from two angels, under the blessing of God. The gems on the crown, even though they are merely painted, enrich it with enormous symbolic value. The martyr is dressed in elaborate military armour. Particular emphasis has been placed on his weapons, which are very accurately rendered.

In exactly the same way, the two portable mosaics of the 11th century, gifts of the Emperor Nikiforos Botaneiates, had been placed next to each other in the cathedral before they were transferred to the museum. One seldom has the opportunity to see such works of art so closely. Portable mosaics of Byzantium were made by a totally different technique than the wall mosaics and were valuable objects, with a clear imperial symbolism that distinguishes them from the other portable icons. There are only a few dozen surviving Byzantine portable mosaics in the world, and these two icons are the biggest.

The two martyrs are depicted in the despotic icons of the temple of the old Catholic in a way that reminds the depiction of the the Christ the Pantocrator and the Virgin Mary holding the divine infant. This iconographic choice is unusual, as the painter preferred to present the status of saints Georgios and Demetrios as officials as symbols instead of their military status that prevailed at that time. In that way it highlights the honorary position they hold in the monastery. The four icons are considered to be part of the same order with the 'vemothera', which bear the inscription 'ΔΕΗΣΙΣ ΤΟΥ ΔΟΥΛΟΥ ΤΟΥ Θ[ΕΟ]Υ ΑΚΑΚΙΟΥ ΜΟΝΑΧΟΥ ΕΤΟΥΣ ΖΡΙΖ' (7117 of the Creation of the World, that is, 1609).

It is not surprising, therefore, when one discovers, adjacent to the old cathedral of St Georgios, which was probably built in the 11th century on an even older one, the chapel of St Demetrios, to the south. Thus, the two martyrs are still standing next to each other in the old courtyard.