Panagia Katapoliani (Hekatontapyliani)
| Department | Archive |
|---|---|
| Collection | Byzantine Research Fund |
| Reference No. | BRF/01/01/16/033 |
| Level | Item |
| Place |
Panagia Katapolini (Hekatontapyliani) Paros Paros Island |
| Dates | 1910 |
| Donor/Creator |
Jewell, Mr Harry Herbert |
| Scope and Content | Panagia church: Ciborium (details). The drawing is entitled in ink: 'Great Church - Details of Ciborium'. Further annotation in ink survives. |
| Further information | The church of Panagia Katapoliani (of Our Lady of the Hundred Gates, Hekatontapyliani is a later version) at Paroekia, the capital of Paros, was one of the most venerable religious centres of the Byzantine world. The group of buildings consists of the Great (main) church which is dedicated to the Assumption of the Virgin (Analepses), the older church of Hagios Nikolaos which adjoins it on the north, the small south chapel of Hagioi Anagryroi and the Baptistery, dedicated to Hagios Ioannis the Forerunner on the south side. The Great church, originally a wooden-roofed basilica, was built according to the legend by Hagia Heleni who, on her way to Jerusalem stopped in the island and found there a small church, very likely the old chapel of Hagios Nikolaos. The Empress vowed to raise a new church on the site if she was to return with the Holy Cross. However, it was her son, Constantine the Great, who accomplished her wish: the new basilica, which was built upon an ancient temple nearby with an impressive mosaic floor depicting Hercules’ Twelve Labours, had an open atrium and a baptistery close to it. Justinian in the 6th c. restored the building: the renovated church was cruciform in plan, with narthex and a nave of four bays with aisles and galleries above separated by arcading. A dome was added to Hagios Nikolaos church, originally basilican in plan, while the Baptistery was rebuilt as a domed basilica subsequently to the Great church and abutting on it. Noteworthy is the sculpture mainly of the Great church: the altar as well as some of the templon and the ambon closure slabs belong to the original early Christian basilica. The complex was subjected to considerable alternations and repairs mainly during the 16th and 17th c. and suffered severe damage during the 1508 earthquake. It was restored in 1959 by A. Orlandos. |
| Reference |
The Church of Our Lady of the Hundred Gates (Panagia Hekatontapyliani) in Paros. 41, fig.38b. |