ΧΑΪΔΑΡΙ ΧΑΪΔΑΡΙ - ΣΥΝΑΝΤΗΣΗ ΜΕ ΤΗΝ ΙΣΤΟΡΙΑ | Page 143

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Chaidari during Byzantine and post-Byzantine times:
The Daphni Monastery
O
n current archaeological evidence, Chaidari
was a rural deserted area in the long period
between the 4th and 18th century crossed by
the Sacred Way, the basic communication artery to and
from Athens. The semi-mountainous area of Chaidari was
densely wooded. The well-known monastery of Daphni,
built on top of the sanctuary of Apollon Daphnaios was
an exceptional site and attracted monks and pilgrims from
the 11th until the 16th century. Both its architecture and mo-
saics cast it an outstanding monument of Byzantine art.
The origin of the name
of the Daphni Monastery
View of the Daphni Monastery catholicon from the east.
The name of the monastery has been linked with Apollon
Daphnaios or Daphephoros (laurel-bearer), whose
sanctuary lies beneath the monastery. There were many
laurel bushes in the area too, noted by travellers. The
monastery has been linked with Panagia of Daphne in
Constantinople, as well as stories involving princes and
princesses. These stories stem out of the belief that the
monastery had been an imperial commission.
The construction of Daphni is usually placed within the
6th century, as part of the spreading of the Christian
religion. The first church at Daphni is believed to have
been a basilica, i.e. a long rectangular building oriented
east-west, with an apse on the east side and possibly
divided into three aisles via parallel internal colonnades.
It functioned as a catholicon, namely the main church
of the monastery complex. The monastery had cells
and visitors’ residence, refectory and cooking areas
etc., and was surrounded by a strong fortification wall,
since it was away from the town and upon an important
route. The paucity of evidence between the 7th and 11th
century suggests a period of decline or even desertion,
followed by the systematic renovation, demonstrated by
the new church, a cross-in-square of the octagonal type
decorated with mosaics.
A suggestion for re-dating
the establishment of the Daphni Monastery
A late 11th century re-dating of Daphni is based upon
the re-examination of the architecture and the lack of
monasteries south of Mt Olympos before the end of the
Iconoclasm, i.e. the early 9th century. The earliest south
Left: View of the Daphni Monastery from the southwest during the 1950s.