CATHEDRAL OF SAINT SAINT - DENΙS THE AREOPAGITE
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Contemporary Athens celebrates its patron saint on October 3 in this magnificent century-old Orthodox Christian cathedral.
Contemporary Athens is here under the protection of its patron saint, St Denis the Areopagite. Work on the impressive temple, dedicated to St Denis and overlooking Skoufa Street in Kolonaki, began in 1923 and was completed in 1931. It is a cruciform building with a large dome, whose exterior decorations are borrowed from archaic architectural elements. Anastássios Orlandos, the renowned architect and Byzantinologist, was in charge of the construction and design of the complex.
Built at the beginning of the last century, the temple's particularity is also due to the decoration and ornament of the nave. All the wood carvings, the altar and the bishop's throne are the work of Th. Nomikos, one of the best wood carvers of the time, who, together with his brother, also a carver, carved and modelled the central chandelier of the church piece by piece. The wall mosaics are exceptional, the work of the master S. Xenopoulos.
But if the church is worth a visit, it is because of the paintings of Spyros Vassileiou, one of the most renowned contemporary Greek painters. The painter has succeeded in giving the saints and scenes depicting episodes from the Bible a contemporary look, without taking away their spirituality. He has found a way to remain faithful to the Christian tradition by reminding us that holiness and the divine are to be found above all on earth and among us.
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