Agion Oros

AGION OROS – MOUNT ATHOS

The Mount Athos peninsula, officially known as "Agion Oros" since 1045, has been a bastion of Orthodox monasticism since 843, as attested by historical records. The structured communal life on Athos began in 963 with the establishment of the Great Lavra Monastery by the venerable Athanasios. The first Typikon/Standard, signed on goat skin in 972 by Ioannis Tsimiskis and Athos monks, officially mandated communal living and established its fundamental principles. In 1043, Constantine Monomachos signed the Typikon that prohibited women from entering the Garden of the Virgin, known as the entire region of Athos. Subsequently, the development of monastic life on Athos has been rapid and diverse, fostering a multicultural environment where different ethnicities coexist in mutual respect and harmony.

 Although Mount Athos falls under the protection of the Greek state, it operates with autonomous status. Its administrative center, Karyes, centrally located on the peninsula, hosts 19 kathismata (cells) housing the abbots of each monastery, except for Koutloumousiou, situated in close proximity to the capital. At the heart of this small village stands the renowned Protaton church, while to the north lies the Synaxis building. The head of Athos, known as the "Protos," is elected by the abbots and convenes with them in the Synaxis building for deliberations on significant matters.