Art in Albania's South-Gjirokastra and the Role of the Orthodox Church in the Rescue
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Crkvene studije, Ni{ / Church Studies, Nis 10-2013, 365-374 УДК 726.5(496.5) Ioannis Sarigiannidis Faculty of Balkan, Slavic and Oriental Studies University of Macedonia, Thessaloniki - Greece e-mail: [email protected] Eleni G. Gavra Faculty of Balkan, Slavic and Oriental Studies University of Macedonia, Thessaloniki - Greece e-mail: [email protected] THE POST-BYZANTINE ECCLESIASTICAL ARCHITECTURE- ART IN ALBANIA'S SOUTH-GJIROKASTRA AND THE ROLE OF THE ORTHODOX CHURCH IN THE RESCUE Abstract: The presence and preservation of a very large number of monuments of Christian worship in Albania, is a fact. The Orthodox Church of Albania has continuously made enormous efforts for the salvage and preservation of this cultural heritage driven by the promotion of the rich and timeless Orthodox tradition in the country. The aim of this paper will be the promotion of post-Byzantine monuments in the Albania region (history, architecture, painting), the contribution of the Church in their salvage. Keywords: Post-Byzantine monuments; Temples; Albania; Orthodox Church of Albania The aim of this study is to highlight the Ecclesiastical Architecture-Art in Albania, the contribution of the Church to the rescue. The spread of Christianity in Albania since the first Christian centuries is manifested until nowadays by the presence and rescue of a very large number of Christian monuments of worship.1 During the second half of the last century, these monuments experienced great ordeal of no former comparison.2 Due to their high monumental value, many of them were placed under state supervision with the status of preserved cultural monuments during the atheistic regime of Enver Hotza. By doing so, their destruction was avoided, as opposed to monuments of “lesser value” in the long period of religious persecution. Along with the violent ban on religion, the scientific restoration project became inactive creating as such additional problems. In all, 129 churches and monasteries from a total of 181 listed as monuments3 managed to remain in state care, under the status of cultural monuments. Many of the buildings that failed to qualify as cultural monuments were gradually destroyed or changed functional use, such as storage spaces as well as places inappropriate to be worship sites. However, the monuments that managed to be listed as preserved cultural monuments had slightly better luck. The great effort of the atheistic regime regarding monument restoration, focused on other kinds of buildings rather than 1 Popa 1965 2 Bishop Sebastian 1985, 45-46 3 Church of Albania 2005, 16-20 365 churches and monasteries. As a result, the places of worship were abandoned and a total or partial destruction was inflicted to these sacred monuments. A solution occurred with the fall of the communist regime in 1990 and the activation of the Mother Church of Constantinople for the revival-restoration of the Church of Albania through the delegation of the Patriarchal Exarch Mr. Anastasios, bishop of Androusis, and nowadays Archbishop of Tirana and All Albania.4 The first liturgy and devotional gatherings were held either in ruined temples, or in the countryside-where previously there were temples and monasteries.5 However, by the election of Mr. Anastasios in the leadership of the Archdiocese, the repair, restoration, maintenance but also the construction of new churches started gradually. The result of the great effort based on scientific restoration and rescue operations, was the restoration of 60 historic church buildings within 20 years. At the same time, over 150 new churches were fundamentally constructed and 160 churches were entirely or partly rebuilt.6 The Orthodox Autocephalous Church of Albania has been making continuous efforts for the preservation and conservation of cultural heritage with a view to highlighting the rich timeless Orthodox tradition in the country.7 To be able, yet, to better understand the current situation in Albania it would be appropriate to make a brief historical review and a reference both in architecture and painting. Christianity spread in Epirus and Illyria, today Albania, by the Apostle Paul himself,8 who made the mainland city of Nicopolis base of his missionary activity. During the first centuries of the Roman Empire and the persecution of Christians many Christians were martyred; known martyrs of this period are St. Astis, St. Donatos, St. Eleftherios, etc. Epirus was part of the Eastern Illyricum under the ecclesiastical jurisdiction of the bishop of Rome up to 732 AD. After 732 AD the ecclesiastical provinces came under the jurisdiction of the Ecumenical Patriarchate in Istanbul, imbeded in the Syntagmatio provinces of the Ecumenical Throne.9 The conquered areas of the Balkans in the 15th century by the Ottomans formed an administrative unit, the Vilayet of Rumelia. Gjirokastra was conquered in 1418 AD. The main administrative unit of the Church is the metropolis and its subdivision the diocese. Thus, under Turkish occupation every metropolis and diocese had a specific place in the "Leadership Class" of the high priests of the Patriarchate with specific geographic boundaries. In 1835 the diocese of Dryinoupoleos was upgraded to a metropolis, titled Dryinoupoleos, Delvinou and Himara, headquartered in Gjirokastra.10 During the Ottoman rule, the main problem for the Church was the ongoing collective Islamization. Most certainly it influenced the Albanian population more than others -primarily due to lack of Christian literature in their native language (first written texts are from the 15th century, until the 18th century there were few texts, growing gradually with the Albanian national awakening).11 Since the 17th century, new monasteries were built in many regions to support the orthodox Christians. These monasteries evolved into centers of Orthodox resistance, 4 Church of Albania 2012 5 Thomo 2004, Church of Albania 2005, 10-11 6 Ecumenical Patriarchate 2012 7 Romfea 2010 8 Aravantinos 1856, 12, Oikonomou 1969, 19 9 Aggelopoulos 1992, 34 10 Papa 2009, 46 11 Manta 1995, Kiriazi 1994, 17-18, Nistazopoulou & Pelekidou 1972 366 intellectual culture, education and community action; e.g., the abbey of Ravenion, Pepelis, Dryanou, Tsepou, etc.12 This period will be stamped with a new wave of martyrs for their faith, with the characteristic forms of holy Kosmas Aetolian, holy Christos the Gardener, the Osiomartyr Nicodemus of Elbasan, St. James Arvanitis from Korca, etc. Epirus was a established region on its own with its capital Ioannina, constituting Vilayet. It was divided into itself north and south by the Protocol of Florence in 1913. In the 20th century with the creation of the Albanian state an issue of an independent Albanian Church was raised as the Church emancipation would help consolidate political independence. The climate that was underway in the early years of independence was expressed with coup in Berat in 1922 with the proclamation of autocephaly of the Church. Until 1937 that the Autocephalous of the Church of Albania would officially be given there would have been 15 years of upheaval. In this interval several attempts to resolve were unsuccessful. The problem finally resolved in the spring of 1937 with the release of the Patriarchal and Synodical Tome blessing the Autocephalous Orthodox Church of Albania.13 The above volume included the creation of four ecclesiastical districts: a. Tirana, Durres and Elbasan b. Koritsa c. Gjirokastra (Gjirokastra, Pogoni, Delvino, Saints Saranda and Himara Premeti) d. Berat, Vlora and Kaninis. Unfortunately, the progress of the Albanian Church halted the Second World War and later in 1944 the rise of Albanian communists under the command of Enver Hotza. The anti-religious and illiberal policy gradually escalated with the nationalization of all church property, the governmental intervention and control of the statutes of the Church. The political practices of the authorities were reported repeatedly to the Ecumenical Patriarch Athenagoras. Corollary whereof the Albanian authorities to declare in 1967 that they were the first Marxist atheist state in the world, with tragic consequences for all religious communities in the coming years, as the closing of churches, monasteries, the defrocking of priests, persecution and martyrdom.14 Today the Diocese of Gjirokastra has spiritual leader the Bishop Demetrios Ntilmpasani (Sinaiti). Post-Byzantine Architecture in Albania The Ottoman occupation led to temporary standstill of cultural development that had previously been observed –in ecclesiastical architecture and art- from the 10th to the 15th century. Important monuments that have survived from the previous period bear witness to the high level of art and architectural tradition of the place, influenced by the broader Byzantine and post-Byzantine surroundings. Typical examples in the area of Gjirokastra is the church of the Virgin Mary in the Upper Labovo, work of 10th century fine art, the church of Panagia Episkopi in the 10th century, the Monastery of St. Nicholas in Mesopotamo, the church of Panagia of Vlacherna in Berat. In Shkodra district, the church of St. Sergius and Bacchus, 13th century, etc.15 From the second half of the 16th and 17th centuries new churches were built and older ones were restored.16 The key features of the temples of this period are initially the 12 Kamaroulias 1996, Giakoumis 1997 13 Bishop Alexoudis 1869, 116, Glavinas 1985, 32-39 14 Bishop Anastasios 2004, Dorkofiki 1991, 33, Voulgaraki 1997, 43-44 15 Giakoumis 1994, 27-33 16 Thomo 2002, 61 367 small dimensions, the existence of loggia, the central axis of the temple is longer, the domes are over a cylindrical multifaceted drum etc. Typical churches of this period are the Sotirar in Tremist Premetis (1540 - 1560), St. Athanasius in Mazar Polytsanis (1513), the monastery of Prophet Elias in Georgoutsates, the Virgin of Zervati (1569) Vrachogorantzi etc. This church building activity reaches its peak in the mid 18th century, with typical buildings: in Berat, the Cathedral of Virgin Mary (1797), in Mouzakia overtops (stands) the monastery of Ardefousis (Ardenitsas), the Church of Saint George in Limpofs (1776), temples of Moschopolis etc.