Ministry of Culture
General Directorate of Antiquities and Cultural Heritage
Ephorate of Antiquities of the Cyclades
AGIOS IOANNIS THEOLOGOS IN DANAKO, NAXOS
The conservation and restoration of a great iconoclastic monument
Athens, July 16, 2025
The Ephorate of Antiquities of the Cyclades, as the regional Service of the Ministry of Culture responsible, with the active support of the local parish of Zoodochos Pigi Danakou and the priest, Fr. Petros Amorgianos, designed and implemented the work of restoring the cemetery church of Agios Ioannis the Theologos in Danako, Naxos. The work included the landscaping, the restoration of the building and the conservation of the non-iconographic fresco decoration by the Department of Conservation of Antiquities and Works of Art of the Ephorate. The initial phase of the two-aisled vaulted church dates to the period of iconoclasm (726-787, 814-842), probably between 815-830.
The entire monument and the surrounding area were heavily damaged by cement cladding. The thick layer of concrete was removed inside and out. On the north side, two blocked arched openings were identified that functioned as intended communication channels with a third aisle to the north, which was never constructed. Subsequently, new consolidating materials were applied, the vaults were coated with a substrate of compatible mortar and finally covered with local stone slabs.
Inside, the modern iconostasis was removed. The old marble slab and the built structure of the Holy Altar in the semi-cylinder of the apse of the north aisle and the two layers of lime mortar were all removed. Thus were revealed and preserved the original built synthronos of the church, which consists of three steps and bears an episcopal throne on the top.
The remains of the old paving were uncovered in the north aisle, while in the south the rocky substratum was located. An excavation was carried out and three cist tombs partially cut into the soft rock were found. There were at least two skeletons per tomb and sherds with an engraved inscription ΙC XC NIKA or a star of David. The floor of the church was then reformed by replacing the slabs that were there discovered. The paving was done with old natural slabs of the locality, after the new electrical installations had been installed under the floor.
On the eastern wall of the church, a layer of non-pictorial decoration was revealed: in the quadrant of the apse, in the centre of a background of leaves, a large bejewelled cross is painted within a circular halo composed of concentric multi-coloured circles. The semi-cylinder is dominated by two multi-coloured painted shields with a cross within a rhombus. Geometric and floral motifs complement the impressive non-pictorial composition. The dedicatory inscription that runs around the base of the quadrant of the apse and the arches of the two-lobed window mentions the steward of the ‘glorious’ church, one Agapitos. A newer layer of paintings, dated to the late Byzantine period, adorned the northern wall, and include fragments of a Deesis representation with Christ enthroned, a cross and a figure of a hierarch.
Externally, after the removal of the newer graves adjacent to the northern wall of the church, work was carried out to shape and pave the courtyard and separate it from the area of the modern cemetery. These works permit liturgical perambulations around the monument and its being visible from a wider view-point.
The work at Theologos is part of the large restoration program of the Byzantine churches of Naxos, which is being implemented by the Ephorate of Antiquities of the Cyclades and is financed by the national resources of the Ministry of Culture as well as by private donations. With the completion of the restoration work of Theologos in Danakos, another important monument of the Naxian countryside is reestablished. The inauguration will be held by His Eminence Metropolitan of Paronaxia, Mr. Kallinikos, on Monday, July 21, 2025, at 7:30 p.m.
Project financing: Ministry of Culture-National Resources & donations from the parish of Zoodochos Pigi Danakos
Project design and implementation: Ephorate of Antiquities of the Cyclades
Ephorate of Antiquities of the Cyclades:
Directorate and scientific supervision: Dimitris Athanasoulis, archaeologist, Ph.D., director
Responsible Archaeologist: Dimitris Hatzilazarou, archaeologist, Ph.D.
Restoration study & supervision: Dimitris Kormaniatis, architect
Wall painting conservation study: Nikos Vittis, conservator
Wall painting conservation: Nikos Vittis, Georgia Makrygeni, Pavlina Tsikna, Irini Tsami, Spyros Orkopoulos, Viki Papagiannopoulou, Elias Anastasakis, Roula Kougioufa and Kostas Verykokkos.
