SAINT DEMETRIOS THE MYRRH-GUSHER
The patron saint and protector of Thessalonica, the Great-martyr Saint Demetrios the Myrrh-gusher with his well-known face, became the prototype for later hagiographers. He is represented by Panselenos standing upright holding a javelin in his right hand and a bow and two arrows in his left. Behind him his shield is visible. Panselenos decorates his hair with a diadem similar to Saint George's (see no. 26). Saint Demetrios lived in the time of Diocletian (284-304) and Maximianos (286-305) and was martyred, when the latter was in Thessalonica and the Christian youth Nestor defeated the beastly fighter Lyaeos by his prayers while he was imprisoned in Valaneio, next to the stadium. After this unexpected event, Maximianos did not confine himself to killing Nestor only, but also he gave the order to lance Saint Demetrios.
Today Thessalonica is adorned with the magnificent church built in honor of Saint Demetrios, where his holy relics are preserved; it is one of the greatest shrines of pilgrimage in the Balkans. The church is a basilica with five aisles, with a wooden roof. It was constructed, according to tradition, near the place where the saint was martyred. The construction of the original church is dated at 413. The present-day church is the product of restoration (1949) after the great fire of 1917, which destroyed the monument. During the long period from the 5th until the 20th century the building had undergone repairs, additions and renovations. In 1490 or 1491, during the reign of Sultan Vayazit II (1480-1512), the church was converted to a mosque with the name "Kasemie". The frescoes (1308) of the side chapel of Saint Euthymios are attributed to Panselenos.
Through actions taken by a contemporary Metropolitan of Thessalonica, Panteleimon II (+ 2003), the saint's relics were transferred to Thessalonica from San Lorenzo in Campo, Italy, where they had been transported during the Middle Ages.
http://www.eikastikon.gr/xristianika/panselinos/index_en.html
ez a kedvencem! / my favourite!
Saint Demetrius and children. 7th-century mosaic from Hagios Demetrios, Thessaloniki
ez a kedvencem! / my favourite!
Saint Demetrius and children. 7th-century mosaic from Hagios Demetrios, Thessaloniki
