At the southern steep coast of Amorgos, nested at the very high rocks, visible only from the sea, one can see the all-white monastery of Panagia Hozoviotissa, the most important monument of the island. It is dedicated to the Presentation of the Virgin Mary and its name is related to Hozova at the Holy Land, from which the icon of Panagia Hozoviotissa came.
Its first core dates back to the 9th century, during the period of the iconoclasm, and coincides with the coming of the icon from the Holy Land. As a founder they mention emperor Alexios I Komnenos, which in 1088 reconstructed it. The monastery was a stauropegic one and continued to function in the period of the Venetian occupation, as a matter of fact in 1686 there were important expansions and alterations to its buildings. During the Turkish occupation it still prospered, and it maintained the privileges and the huge property that it had in its possession not only in Amorgos, but also in many islands of the Aegean, and contributed decisively to the intellectual life of the island. Characteristic is that in 1829 the gymnasium was founded in Chora, one of the first schools of the Greek state.
In its long history, the building has suffered looting, natural decay from falling rocks, renovations and repairs, which have changed its initial form. Nowadays, his form is austere and simple; it has a length of approximately 40 meters, while its width does not exceed the 5 meters. It is structured in eight “floors”, which are connected with narrow staircases, and at the mazy interior arcades and arches dominate. The oldest part of the monastery is at the highest spot, the small rock-roofed church and some cells at the fissures of the rock. The catholicon is a small aisleless church shaped in a cavity of the rock and at its interior the two icons of the Virgin Mary are kept. At a special area some of the most precious relics of the monastery are exhibited, which date from the 11th to the 18th century.
It is a men’s monastery and it celebrates on the 21st of November.
Informations
Additional
Date:
11th century
Celebrates:
21 November
Holy Metropolis:
Thera, Amorgos and the Islands
Under the Supervision of:
Ephorate of Antiquities of Cyclades
