Hagios Ioannis (Belfry), Kouskouni
| Department | Archive |
|---|---|
| Collection | Byzantine Research Fund |
| Reference No. | BRF/02/01/14/103 |
| Level | Item |
| Place |
Mani |
| Dates | 1909? |
| Donor/Creator |
Traquair, Mr Ramsay |
| Scope and Content | View of the belfry. The photograph is annotated in pencil at the back. |
| Further information | The area in the middle of the Peloponnese, on the Laconia/Messinia border, was known as early as the 10th c. as the ‘Mani’. It was occupied by the Slavs in the early Medieval period and was christianised in the 10th c. by Hosios Nikon. There are scores of Byzantine and post-Byzantine churches in the Mani: the first major phase of building activity in the region seems to run from the late 10th to the later 12th c. Kouskouni is a settlement close to Areopolis south of Sparta. Its modern name is ‘Soteiras’. The church of Hagios Ioannis is a post-Byzantine building: it is dated to the 18th c. The belfry just above the west entrance to the church is, in terms of design, an elaboration of the typical Maniate bell-tower: a series of receding stages with a set-back above the string-course at each sill or arch level. The bells are hung in a double-arched opening on the second storey. All string-courses are carved with incised wave mouldings, semicircles and circles. The voussoirs of the bell arches have six-pointed stars set in circles. |