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T
he
Atlas of the Christian Monuments of the Aegean
that you have in your hands
is the sequel to the
Archaeological Atlas of the Aegean
, published in 1998 by
the Ministry for the Aegean and the National and Kapodistrian University of
Athens, under the scientific supervision of Professor Eva Simantoni-Bournia and Lina
Mendoni.
The aim of the present work is to offer a post-antiquity, Byzantine period panorama,
in a Christian context, of the monumental wealth of the Archipelago. This exploration
extends to the geographical entirety of the Aegean Sea – the islands and the mainland
coastlines of Greece and Asia Minor. The coverage ranges from the Early Christian
years to the historical landmark of the fall of Constantinople in 1453. This period
nearly coincides with the lifespan of the Byzantine empire, during which the Aegean
remained partly outside the imperial borders. Nevertheless, despite various crises or
Byzantine loss of authority over the islands and coastlines, the Aegean Sea remained
an arena for glorious achievements in the major manifestations of Byzantine culture,
that is, architecture and art.
The
Atlas of the Christian Monuments of the Aegean
was completed in the summer
of 2007 but its publication was delayed due to prevailing conditions. Text updating
reflecting the development of archaeological research during the seven-year period
since elapsed would serve to delay publication further. For this reason, and bearing
in mind the completeness of the original contributions and the Atlas’ special features,
we chose to proceed to publication without making new additions.
The archaeological sites and monuments of the Byzantine Aegean are featured in
geographical order, starting from the coastline of Greek Thrace and concluding with
the islands. Locations and monuments can be easily traced by readers through the
numbering printed on the accompanying maps. Specialist terminology occurring
throughout the text is explained in the glossary, which can be found on the last pages.
We would like to express our warmest gratitude to all the contributors, especially the
authors – mainly eminent staff at the Greek Archaeological Service – for the quality
of their offerings. Special thanks to Mr Andreas Vlachopoulos, associate professor of
Prehistoric Archaeology at the University of Ioannina, who played a vital role in the
realisation of this publication during his tenure as a specialist scientist at the Ministry
for the Aegean. We are also thankful to Magdalene Alvanou, archaeologist, head of
the Department of Cultural Promotion at the Secretariat General for the Aegean and
Island Policy (and at the former Ministry for the Aegean as well), for the revival of the
project of this edition.
We hope that the
Atlas
will motivate its readers, and accompany them on their
explorations of Christian monuments around the Aegean Sea – the most glorious
marine environment in the Byzantine empire.
Nikolaos Gkioles – Giorgos Pallis
F o r e wo r d
