"Spolia" (spoils)
Goods stolen or taken forcibly from a person or place: "the looters carried their spoils away"
The Church of the Virgin Mary Gorgoepikoos and Saint Eleutherius (informally known as "the little church") can be found in the center of Athens near a much larger & newer church called Mitropoli. Most people walk past it on their way to the shops on Pandrossou, but the artists of Athens often stop.
The church was made during the Ottoman occupation. Christians at that time were allowed to build churches, but didn't have the funding to do so. As a result, the little church was assembled from carved stones found at places like the nearby the Ancient Agora and even the Acropolis. The stones were not all the same size or sourced from the same ruins—giving an almost "Frankenchurch" effect. But at the same time it's unforgettable and incredible.
In this video Pete takes us on a tour of "the little church".
This is the second video we've made of the church. We've learned quite a bit since the first attempt and out of respect both for the church and the various historians who have helped us along the way, we decided to share an update.
That said, what we don't know exceeds what we do, so expect more of these in the future.
Club Rings
Are Monastiraki "Clubs" the perfect Men's Rings? The colors and design content are busy but subtle, so the rings combine a wonderful amount of depth without being overly flashy. The profile of the ring also takes the cool side - with a medium sized face on a strong band.
Cufflinks
The cufflinks feature bold, square faces with detailed designs in your choice of Sterling Silver or 18k-gold two-tones combination set against a rich black background. The designs closely mirror the symbols carved into the church's walls, capturing the essence of traditional Greek artistry.
Crosses and Pendants
A fun challenge is to find these patterns on the walls of the little church! The crosses should be easy, but the pendant might pose a challenge!
The 3 dimensional layering technique of perforated metals pioneered for the Monastiraki collection has found it's way deep into Gerochristo collection.
More recent collections include:
"Meadow Shadows" (left) is defined by a dense leafy pattern that often features pave set gemstones such as rubies or diamonds
"Garden Shadows" (right) features a swirling display of vines and flowers with larger gemstones.
We currently have a page for Garden Shadows
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