MYSTRAS

Παρουσίαση

The present volume - Mystras, the Medieval City and the Castle - is a complete guide to the palaces, churches, and castle of Mystras. It is a new edition of a book that holds a distinguished place in the literature on this Byzantine fortress city, having stood the test of time. Not only is it a first-class archaeological guide for the visitor; it has proved itself an essential, indeed an unsurpassed working tool for the scholar and the archaeologist. It has continued to be a reference point for more recent publications on this medieval fortress city.
The author is the late Manolis Chatzidakis (1909-1998), the distinguished Byzantinist and Member of the Academy of Athens. Chatzidakis had conducted thorough studies on the monuments of Mystras when Inspector of Byzantine Antiquities, from 1941 to 1975. He was the first scholar to summarize his knowledge of Mystras in a book aimed at the general reader (publ. 1948, 1956, 1981). It described the city's history, civilization, and -in rather more detail- chapels and churches: the Metropolis, the Brontochion, the Hodegetria-Aphendiko, St. Sophia, the Peribleptos, the Evangelistria, and the Pantanassa. It also described Mystras' palaces, its town houses, the Castle, and the walls. It was prefaced by an introductory text about the ruins of the city, and it ended with an epilogue that elegantly related what has been called 'the Mystras myth': the medieval city's presence and glamour in travellers' accounts and in later European thought. [...] (From the publisher)

Περιεχόμενα

-Introduction
-The ruined city
-History-location and setting
Mystras before 1249
Mystras - a Frankish castle (1249-1262)
Mystras as the seat of a Byzantine Military governor (1262-1348)
Mystras as the capital of the Despotat
The Katakouzenoi (1348-1384)
The Palaiologoi (1384-1460)
After 1460
-The monuments of Mystras
-The Metropolis
Architecture
Sculptured decoration
Museum
Wall paintings
-The Brontochion
Sculptured decoration
Wall paintings
-Hodegetria - Aphendiko
Architecture
Sculptured decoration
Wall paintings
-St. Sophia
Architecture
Sculptured decoration
Wall paintings
-The Peribleptos
Architecture
Sculptured decoration
Wall paintings
-The Evangelistria
Architecture
Sculptured decoration
Wall paintings
-The Pantanassa
Architecture
Sculptured decoration
Wall paintings
-The Chapels
-The Palace
-The Houses
-The citadel and the walls
-The Myth of Mystras