The ruins of the Monastery of Christ near Therma

Although the sign says "The Holy Monastery of Christ", the actual monastery doesn't exist anymore. Only its ruins remain in a very beautiful natural setting, somewhere to the east of Therma, between the valleys of Gria Vathra and Kardelis. The area around it is known as "Christos" (or K'stos in the local dialect).

From the main northern coastal road (about 1.5 kilometers from Therma in the direction of Kipos Beach), a pretty bad dirt road winds for 2 kilometers through ferns and trees before it comes to a stop 150 meters above sea level. The ever-present goats watch worryingly from a respectable distance.

We stopped the car 50 or so meters away from the ruins and walked the last part of the way. From there you can peek through the dense vegetation upon the distant panorama of the continental Greek shores and the intense blue of the Thracian Sea.

A metal fence and some tall trees hide the monument which dates from the late Byzantine period. It is believed that the monastery was built in the middle of the 14th century and, given the dense traces of habitation in the area, it was most probably part of a settlement.

Due to the advanced state of decay and other various hardships, in 1771 it became a metochi (dependency) of the Iviron Monastery of Mount Athos. The same thing happened to the St. Athanasius Monastery (near Alonia), the only one on the island which still functions today. This is the first written mention of the monument.

In the 19th century the Monastery of Christ was abandoned and in 1964 was declared an archeological site. Today, only the ruins of the church and the remains of the buildings which once formed the monastic complex are preserved - a cistern, some cells and a bakery, all surrounded by an old wall.

The church is small - about 12 meters long and a little more than 4 meters wide. It consists of a narthex, a nave and only one apse to the east. It was built out of different materials - stone, bricks and mortar combined with some bits of ceramic tiles, but also marble pieces originating from the Sanctuary of the Great Gods. Blind arcades overlined by bricks in the upper part decorate the walls of the nave. A few cute mice scattered when we made our appearance.

Overall, the monument is a strange mishmash of Christianism and paganism. On one hand, you see crosses engraved in stone, on the other the ancient inscriptions on the marble pieces removed from Paleopoli. And then there's the silence. A lot of silence…

Although there's an old sign with visiting hours by the entrance, in the past years, the Monastery of Christ was only open for religious services a few times every summer.