Posts in category: Κτηριακη Συγκροτηση 2 – Παντοκρατορος

Apart from the ancient chapel of the Dormition, the existence of the so-called Tomb of the Founders at the north wall is also significant. It was moved there in 1847, formerly being located in the chapel of the Three Heirarchs. According to Gerasimos Smyrnakis, although the tomb is a cenotaph, it does contain skeletal remains of 'not only large-, but also small-sized bodies,' a fact that leads to the conclusion that it might be the family tomb of the founders. The pseudo-sarcophagus decorated with crosses, birds, and trees which was placed in the Tomb dates to the 14th century, and is found today on the balcony at the entrance to the tower.
More recent decorations are depicted on the Tomb itself, dating to the period of the repainting of the frescoes in the cathedral. According to Porfurio Ouspensky who visted the Monastery in 1846 (i.e. prior to the renovations of 1847) and in 1859 (when the repainting of the Cathedral was carried out by the well-known painter Mathaios Ioannos), three inscriptions above the tomb are repeated, but with several differences from the inscriptions that were above the Tomb of the Founders when that was still located within the chapel. It is worth noting that these refer to the actual identity of the founder Alexios and do not connect his person with the Emperor Alexios Comninos, while, however, mentioning the two brothers' roles as founders.

The northeastern area of the entrance hall includes the chapel of the Dormition of the Virgin Mary, which is considered to be one of the original structures. According to an inscription on the lintel of the western entrance, some sections of its frescoes date to 1538, the period when an artist of the Cretan School (perhaps even Theofanis of Crete himself) worked. It is possible that the frescoes on the exterior western wall uncovered during the previous years' renovations belong to him.
The recent frescoes were part of the work which took place in 1868, funded by 'a grant and subscription of the venerable monks Isuchios and Isaios of the respected monastery of Pantokratoros, through the hands of the hieromonk Benjamin and the late hieromonk Gregorios.' This work involved the repainting of older frescoes dating probably to the 15th century, parts of which are visible in the arch of the Sanctuary.
Since 1982, the icon screen of the chapel includes the miraculous icon of St Georgios of Faneromenos. The saint acquired this epithet due to a miracle he performed: He protected the icon and the monks in the Cell named in his honour in the region of Kapsalas, where it originally belonged, from thieves. According to the tradition, the icon was housed in the monastic community of St. Georgios of Plakari. During the period of Ottoman rule, thieves, pretending to be travellers, intended to enter the community to loot it. A youth met them at the entrance and, after escorting them outside, disappeared, leaving the thieves paralysed all through the night. The next morning, the monks were surprised to find the thieves who, terrified by their night-long paralysis, related the event to them. Subsequently, they identified the face depicted in the miraculous icon as being the same as that of the youth they had met. According to the same tradition, not only did the thieves repent, but one of them was inducted as a monk into the Cell of Plakari, while another joined the Skete of St Anna.

The area of the entrance hall (Λιτή or Εσωνάρθηκα; Liti, Exovarthika, 'Outer nave'), west of the central nave is connected to it via a classical style marble door, with another door on each side. This is the main entrance to the cathedral. Important interventions in the entrance hall were made during the renovations of 1847, work which was performed by the master craftsman from Tinos, Chatz-Adonis Lytras, the father of the great artist Nikiforos Lytras, with funding from the Archimandrite of the Monastery Meletios Katsoranos of Kydonieos, according to surviving inscriptions on the outer lintel.
At that time, the two pre-existing small naves were combined, and a common roof with three domes supported by marble columns was added. In addition, the chapel of the Three Heirarchs was demolished. The chapel had stood at the right side of the entrance hall, where the Tomb of the Founders was located and where magnificent frescoes by Theofanos of Crete had been painted. As part of the renovation program, the frescoes were repainted, as witnessed by a second inscription above the lintel of the main door connecting the entrance hall with the nave.
At the beginning of the 18th century, an open gallery was added to enclose the entrance hall from west and south. The square-shaped bell tower is set in the area between the chapel of the cemetery and the north wall of the entrance hall, and based on the tiles at its summit, dates to 1735. The oldest bell of the tower dates to 1610, and is decorated with images of saints. According to notes by Barsky, the bell tower also had a clock, the mechanism for which survives until today.

In 1614, significant renovation work were undertaken in the area of the Sanctuary, which was extended about five meters to the east, while at two of its corners, the northeastern and the southeastern, two polygon-shaped, dome-covered rooms (typicaria) were constructed.
The nave is separated from the area of the Sanctuary by the exceptionally crafted carved and gold-plated wooden τέμπλο (templo, or 'icon screen'), the third in the history of the cathedral, which was made in 1614 by Chrysanthos Cliedi, and is decorated with floral themes. The functional role of the icon screen is provided by an exceptionally important document, not only because it contains chronological details and information about the craftsmen who constructed it, but also because, according to the archaeologist I. Papangelo, it is the first documented use of the term templo to denote the use of this type of architectural element to physically separate the sanctuary from the rest of the nave.
The primary decoration of the screen consists of two magnificant icons: Χριστού Παντοκράτορος (Pantokratoros, 'Christ the Ruler of All') and the Θεοτόκου της «Πάντων Χαράς ('The Blessed Mother, the Joy of All)', works of Theofanos of Crete (1535-1546). The icon of Τιμίου Προδρόμου ('St John the Baptist'), with its scenes from his life and martyrdom, was donated in 1655 by the monk Adonios of Chilandarino. Another significant icon is that of the Archangels, at the right of the Pantokratoros icon, which dates to the 17th century and is the oldest surviving portable icon. Scenes depicting miracles performed by the archangels are presented around the perimeter of the icon, with particular attention paid to the four scenes depicting the miracle at the Docheiarios Monastery.
Icons of the twelve apostles decorate the second zone of the screen, while the top section is dominated by the remarkably large-sized Εσταυρωμένος (Estavromenos, 'The crucified One'), a work of a Cretan workshop from the end of the 16th century. Related icons from this workshop, Τα Λυπηρά ('The Mourners', the left and right side panels of the Estavromenos, depicting the mourning Blessed Mother and St John the Theologian) are presently safeguarded in the Sacristy of the Monastery.
The gold-plated, carved wooden doors of the screen are the work of the monk Isaia, and are decorated with 31 small images of prophets and apostles, as well as with the scenes from the Crucifixion and the Annunciation. They date to 1622, according to the relevant records.
Inside the Sanctuary, the wood-carved, pillar-supported κιβώριο (ciborium, 'canopy') above the marble altar dominates the space. On its interior surface, scenes from the 'Heavenly Liturgy' are depicted.

The original church was officially opened around 1363. The marble inscription which today is engraved into the stairway leading from the outer entrance of the church to the bell tower: 'Lord, remember thy servants Alexios and Ioannios, the owners and brothers. Dedicated in the year 1363.'
Four marble columns support the central dome, simultaneously forming the northern and southern dome-topped apses. To the left and right of the nave, at approximately its centre, two marble shrines are located. The shrines, completed in 1896, are the work of the sculpture Georgios Filippotis from Tinos, and were gifts from the monks Akindinos of anti-Andros and Theofilos of Lesbos.
It is worth noting that the presence of the large (1.96 x 0.76 metres) icon in the central nave is truly unique, since it depicts the Blessed Mother full length, with her right hand open in a gesture of open-heartedness, in the Αγιοσορείτισσας (Agiosoreitissas, 'Holy woman') style. According to the Monastery tradition, the icon had been brought from Konstantinople by the owners at the time the physical foundations of the cathedral were being laid. They placed the icon at the spot they had chosen, and the work began. The next morning, however, the icon was found at the location where the Monastery stands today. The workers replaced the icon in its original location and continued work. The next day, the icon was once again found in the present-day location of the Monastery. After a third repetition of this miracle, the owners built the Monastery in the location which had been chosen by Panagia. The original location selected by the owners has been identified as the spot where the chapel of the Great Athanasios exists today, approximately 500 meters northwest of the Monastery.
According to tradition, the silver embellishment of the icon, which had been made in Moscow in 1847, was a gift of a noblewoman from Konstantinople who had been asked by Panagia to donate it.
Yet another shrine, next to the marble shrine on the right of the nave where the icon of the festal saint is situated, was dedicated by the hieromonk Anthimos of Sifnos in 1716. It is decorated with inlaid ivory and tortoise-shell, and is recorded in relevant documents as having been made in Kaffa (Theodosias-Theodosioupolis).

The cathedral was built in the northern section of the courtyard and is dedicated to the Metamorphoseos tou Sotiros ('The Transfiguration of the Saviour'). As is well known, this feast is connected directly to the teaching about the appearance of miraculous light reported by St Gregory of Palamas and the other cloistered clerics during the 14th century, a few decades prior to the founding of the Monastery. It is not coincidental, therefore, that a number of Catholic monasteries which were founded during that period were also dedicated to the Transfiguration. Architecturally, the church follows the plan of the triangular, cruciform plan characteristic of the Athonite churches, with one basic difference: The elongation of the eastern vault and the addition of two polygonal structures (typikaria) to the two corners of the sanctuary make the shape of the cathedral unique.
On the basis of various first-hand accounts as well as recent archaeological research, the lead-roofed cathedral acquired the form it has today after three construction phases. The first dates to the period of the founding of the Monastery, and included the central nave, the eastern section of the entrance nave, and the chapel of the Κοιμήσεως της Θεοτόκου ('The Dormition of the Virgin Mary').