OSSIOS LOUKAS MONASTERY

The male monastery of the Venerable Luke (Ιερά Μονή Οσίου Λουκά/Iera Moni Osiou Louka) enjoys a beautiful natural setting, 410 m above sea level, in a secluded valley of the Helicon massif covered with olive trees. Since 1980, it has been a Unesco World Heritage Site, along with the monastery of Daphni (Attica) and Nea Moni in Chios (northern Aegean). The monastery was founded in the early ^10th century by the Venerable Luke (896-953). Also known as Luke the Younger, this Greek hermit was canonized by the Christian churches for his "miracles" (levitations, prophecies, etc.). The complex was enlarged and embellished in the ^11th century. Descending from the parking lot (with panoramic views), the esplanade is lined with century-old plane trees, the store where monks sell icons and honey, a ^19th-century clock tower and the former refectory, now a museum. The latter houses inscriptions and sculptures from the monastery's metoques (outbuildings), as well as fragments of the frescoes that once adorned the hall.

Church of Ossios Loukas. The catholicon (main church) is on the right after the esplanade. Dedicated to the Venerable Luke, it was built around 1012. Topped by tiled cupolas and supported by three solid buttresses resting on the refectory, it boasts fine stone, brick and white marble walls. Inside, the narthex is covered with gold-leaf mosaics probably created by artists from Constantinople: Christ holding the open Gospel with the inscription "I am the light of the world", medallions depicting the Virgin Mary, St. John the Baptist and the archangels Michael and Gabriel, scenes from the Passion (Crucifixion, Resurrection, Washing of the Feet, Disbelief of St. Thomas) and portraits of the Church Fathers with emaciated features. In the richly decorated nave, at a height of 16 m, the dome, 9 m in diameter, is painted with a large ^17th-century fresco of Christ Pantocrator, imitating the mosaic that once stood there. Also of note are the superb mosaics: the Virgin enthroned with the Child in the central apse and scenes from the Nativity, the Presentation in the Temple and the Baptism of Christ on the corner trunks.

Panagia Church and Agia Varvara crypt. The passageway between the two adjoining churches houses the glass reliquary in which St. Luke's body is covered in a rich archimandrite (eminent priest-monk) habit. The fresco of the Jewish people led by Joshua, in the guise of the Byzantine general Nicephorus II Phocas, also stands out. This is an allusion to a prophecy by Saint Luke, who is said to have foretold the recapture of Crete from the Arabs in 961. Created around 970, this fresco adorned the exterior of the Church of the Virgin (Panagia). Built around 935 and originally dedicated to Saint Barbara (Agia Varvara), the church has been damaged by earthquakes. However, the polychrome marble pavement and six arches on the façade have been preserved. Exit to the right and stairs lead up to a small exhibition on the history of the monastery. Alongside the refectory, further steps lead down under the catholicon into the Agia Varvara crypt. Originally dug out in the ^10th century as a burial place for St. Luke, it is entirely decorated with ^11th-century frescoes. Other frescoes can also be seen in the second courtyard, on the upper floor of the former stables.