Supervisors info:
Γιώργος Πάλλης, Αναπληρωτής Καθηγητής Βυζαντινής και Μεταβυζαντινής Αρχαιολογίας και Τέχνης, ΕΚΠΑ
Σταύρος Μαμαλούκος, Καθηγητής Τμήματος Αρχιτεκτόνων Πανεπιστημίου Πατρών
Ιωάννης Βαραλής, Αναπληρωτής Καθηγητής Πανεπιστημίου Θεσσαλίας
Summary:
In the 18th and 19th centuries, Mount Pelion was one of the mountainous centers of the Ottoman Empire, where trade, craftsmanship and shipping flourished. Because of the self- governing privileges and the historical context, the area saw economic and intellectual prosperity. Consequently, both construction activity and church-building were intense, as the construction of churches met the needs of the parishioners to go to church and to promote the community.
The majority of churches in Pelion at the time of study are three-aisled basilicas with gallery, roof, and portico. Generally, decoration, symmetry in narrow and linearity in long facades, and high-quality construction characterize the churches. Excellent-quality stone carvings and ceramic plates are often found embedded in the facades of churches as decoration. The evolution of the basilica type which prevailed in the 19th century, with the gallery extending above the portico, is traced in mount Pelion early on.
Zagora, the wealthiest and largest village of eastern Pelion, was absolutely in line with, if not leading, the development of the twenty-four settlements. The three parish churches of the village, Agia Kyriaki (1741), Agios Georgios (1765) and Agia Paraskevi (1803-expanded in 1904), are characteristic examples of the overall church architecture of Pelion. The three churches exhibit some of the best characteristics of church building in the area, indicative of the wealth, the desire to promote the community, the construction skills, and the intellectual level of Zagora. They exhibit many similarities, while their differences are attributed to the construction and economic developments that took place during the intervals between the construction of each. Additionally, the survey of the churches showed the exceptional similarity in their dimensions, both internally and externally. Thus, the issue of design in the church architecture of Zagora and Pelion arises.
The three case studies fully integrate into the broader historical, social, and architectural context of the era that created them. The eastern facade of the church of Agios Georgios stands out among all, being one of the most richly-decorated (and most famous in the study of post-Byzantine architecture) ensembles of the period under study.
