Panagia Chryssopodaritissa

The Monastery of Panagia Chryssopodaritissa near the village of Chryssopigi is noted for its namesake icon of the Mother of God with the Golden Leg.

History

The monastery of Panagia Chrysopodaritissa (Greek: the Mother of God with the Golden Leg) was built in the 12th century, into a cave near the village of Chryssopigi in the valley of the Peiros river. This monastery belongs to the Municipality of Fares in the Province of Patra, Prefecture of Achaia, West Greece. It is surrounded by century old trees and gardens and is a prominent landmark. According to legend, the name was given when a man with a sick leg was healed by the Mother of God, the protectress of this monastery. In gratitude, he offered a golden cover to cover the leg of the Virgin Mary of this icon. The monastery used to be called the monastery of Nezeron because it is also located close to the old village of Nezera. The monastery was destroyed during the Orlov Rising (1770, together with the village of Nezera which has been abandoned since then). It was rebuilt in 1812 by a monk named Ananias (from Kombigadi of the Municipality of Farron).

During the Greek revolution in 1820s, Germanos, metropolitan of Patra and the rebels' leader, lived in the monastery for some time. In 1825, the monastery was destroyed again by Ibrahim and the Aegyptians who helped the Turks to subdue the rebels. The abbot of the monastery at that time was Nikiforos Nezeritis, a revolutionary of 1821 and member of the Philiki Etairia. The monastery was rebuilt after the end of the revolution.

The church of the Virgin Mary is built into a cave with stalactites and there are some religious paintings remaining. It has manuscripts dating to 1309 as well as documents from 1635 sent by the Patriarch of Constantinople to the monastery. Today, it has been designated as a monument by the Ministry of Culture (6th Section of Byzantine Antiquities).

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