Kastamonitou Monastery
The monastery was founded in the mid-11th century, either by an unknown member of the aristocratic Byzantine Kastamonites family, or by an unrelated person hailing from the area of Kastamon in Paphlagonia. It is dedicated to Saint Stephen. Its history during the Byzantine period is obscure, and until the 14th century it appears to have been a moderate establishment. After it was destroyed in a fire in the 1420s and restored by the Serbian magnate Radič, it attracted many monks from the South Slavic lands, and experienced a century of prosperity.
The monastery's present buildings date to the 18th and 19th centuries. The monastery has about 40 working monks, including novices, making it one of the more populated monasteries on the Athonite peninsula. The monastery library holds 110 manuscripts and approximately 5,000 printed books.
References
- ^ Talbot & Cutler 1991, p. 1110.
Sources
- Talbot, Alice-Mary; Cutler, Anthony (1991). "Kastamonitou Monastery". In Kazhdan, Alexander (ed.). The Oxford Dictionary of Byzantium. Oxford and New York: Oxford University Press. p. 1110. ISBN 0-19-504652-8.
External links
Media related to Konstamonitou monastery at Wikimedia Commons