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KonstantinosGiakoumis* What Jeremiah will lament our woes, or what is the time that will draw away through oblivions current all what we were destined to live and suffer? Captures of cities, desertions of churches, sacrilege of mostholy utensils,menswails,womensululations,lootings,migrations1 When Niketas Choniates, an eyewitness to the tragic events that followed the fall of Constantinople into the hands of the Crusaders of the Fourth Crusade in April 1204, wrote this statement of lamentation, very little had he witnessed of the sufferings that the former subjects of the Byzantine Empire would experience thereafter, as a consequence of the effected political, administrative and religious changes2. Yet, the disintegration of agrarian and urban economic structuresfromtheeleventhcenturythereafter3,whichresultedinanincreasinglyrevolutionary attitude of the Byzantine subjects, especially during the two decades of the rule of the Angeli (11851204)4, eventually paved the way to the Fourth Crusaders, who found the Byzantine subjects almost as well prepared for the implantation of their feudal institutions as its mountainous terrain proved to be suited to the construction of their feudal castles5. However, both, the events of April 1215, 12046, as well as those after 1204, including heavier taxation for the peasantry, augmented forced labour (angary), distribution of lands as feuds to Crusaders, strict limitations of trade favouring Latin states and, last but foremost, the onerous and detestable slave trade of Orthodox war captives by western traders7, were so crucial as to form, in the words of Bishop Kallistos of Diokleia, the deep disgust and lasting horror with which
*AmoreconcisedformofthispaperwaspresentedintheTenthInternationalCongressofGreekOrientalandAfrican Studies held in Kryoneri, Attica in 2528 August 2005. I thank Dr. Angeliki Lymberopoulou, Lecturer of Byzantine Studies at the Open University, UK, for reviewing my article and her valuable comments and suggestions, as well as Mr.PeterPanchyforhisthoughtfulobservations. 1 K. Sathas, , Reprint: New York 1972, v. 1, p. 104. Cf. A. PapadopoulosKerameus, , ,v.3(1889),p.454,citedinN.G.Ziangos(1974),p.49andnote5onpp.4950. 2Fortheseissues,seeE.Zachariadou(1996),pp.2861,wherereferencestofurtherrelevantliterature. 3 For the decline of economic and agrarian forces from the eleventh century thereafter, see roughly K.M. Setton (1953), pp.225259(253259);andP.Charanis(1953),pp.412424(418424). 4 In Niketas Choniates words , , (there were those who revolted in one place or another, again and again, and it is not possible to say how many times this happened) [Nicetas Choniates, De Isaacio Angelo, v. III/2, Bonn, p. 553; cited and translated in K.M. Setton (1953), p. 254 andnote51]. 5K.M.Setton(1953),p.259. 6 On the history of the Fourth Crusade I am hereby citing a selection of comprehensive secondary sources which use extensively both Byzantine as well as western primary sources on the issue: E. Bradford (1967), The Story of the Fourth Crusade,N.J.EnglewoodCliffs,reviewedbyE.Velde(1969),TheHistoryTeacher,v.2/2,pp.6162;D.E.Queller(1977),The Fourth Crusade: The Conquest of Constantinople, 12011204, Philadelphia, reviewed by J. Folda (1979), in Speculum, v. 54/3, pp.620622andbyJ.RileySmith(1979),inTheEnglishHistoricalReview,v.94/372,pp.624625;andW.B. Bartlett(2000), An Ungodly War: The Sack of Constantinople and the Fourth Crusade, New York, reviewed by R.A. Sauers (2001), in The JournalofMilitaryHistory,v.65/1,pp.169170.Foraselectionofprimarysources,seeE.Hallam[ed.](1989),pp.198245. 7E.Zachariadou(1996),pp.2861.


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Orthodox regard the sack of Constantinople by the Crusaders, so difficult to be realized by Christiansinthewest8. Psychologically, the issue of slave trade poisoned irremediably the relations between the eastern and western worlds. After 1204, Byzantiums enemies, including Christians like Catalans, Venetians and Genoese, seized increasingly Orthodox Christians for the slave market totheextentthatEmperorAndronikosII(12821328)formallyprotestedtheGenoesepracticeof capturing Byzantine subjects for sale in Italy and Spain9. Furthermore, in 1339, when the Byzantine emperor sent monk Varlaam as an ambassador to the papacy in order to negotiate possibilities of common action against the Turkish threat and of a possible union of the two Churches, he set forth a number of conditions, one of which was the liberation of all of the Orthodox slaves kept by Latins and the virtual abolition of slave trade10. In the eyes of the Orthodox, the issue of trading slaves captured by Catholic Christians and sold to Catholic Christians must have been felt at least as onerous as the trade of slaves captured by Turks and soldtoCretanOrthodoxGreeks11. TheOrthodoxChurch,whoretainedauthorityandinfluenceovertheByzantinepeople, was another principal factor determining the relations between the Orthodox and the Roman Catholic worlds. Beyond dogmatic and liturgical disagreements12, there further were deep contradictions related to the daily role of the clergy. While clerical participation in military campaigns was forbidden by the Orthodox Church, the existence of Latin priestsoldiers in the ranks of the Crusader armies13, who could hold lances and shields and also prepare the Holy Communion, shocked the Orthodox Christians14. In addition, since 1204 the Latins, after abolishing the Patriarchate of Constantinople, continued to displace the Orthodox ecclesiastical administration from thelands they conquered.Metropolitans and bishops were not accepted in those regions and only lower members of the clergy could remain. Yet, their ordination was impossible within the occupied territories and candidates for priesthood had to travel to the zonesofanOrthodoxprelatewheretheywereordainedandsentbacktotheirparishes,suchas priests from Venetianoccupied Crete, who were obliged to travel as far as Methoni to get ordained. Last, but not least, a considerable part of the church properties was confiscated15, whiletheeconomicdeclineoftheByzantineEmpirefromthe11thtothe13thcentury16and,after 1204, the decrease in population, economic indigence, and lack of new endowments
T. Ware (1964), The Orthodox Church, Baltimore, p. 69. For Byzantine negative literary reactions to the second crusade, see E. Jeffreys M. Jeffreys (2001), The Wild Beast from the West: Immediate Literary Reactions in Byzantium to the SecondCrusade,inA.E.LaiouR.P.Mottahedeh[eds.](2001),pp.101116;cf.ibid.p.117. 9 The issue of slaves and slave trade after 1204 was treated in D.J. Constantelos (1992), pp. 103114, reviewed by T.S. Miller(1994),inSpeculum,v.69/4,pp.11431145(1144). 10 E. Zachariadou (1996), pp. 2861. For the treatment of slaves in 14th and 15th century Europe, see the useful casestudy of I. Origo (1955), The Domestic Enemy: The Eastern Slaves in Tuscany in the Fourteenth and Fifteenth Centuries, Speculum,v.30/3,pp.321366. 11 For this issue, see A.M. Stahl [ed.] (2000), The Documents of Angelo de Cartura and Donato Fontanella. Venetian Notaries in FourteenthCenturyCrete,DumbartonOaksResearchLibraryandCollection,WashingtonD.C.,passim;thisphenomenon waskindlybroughttomyattentionbyDr.A.Lymberopoulou. 12 For these differences set in their historical context, I cite two basic sources: A. Papadakis (1994), The Christian East and the Rise of the Papacy. The Church (10711453 A.D.), CrestwoodNew York: St Vladimirs Seminary Press; T. Ware (1964), Eustratios Argenti: A study of the Greek Church under Turkish Rule, Oxford: Clarendon Press; and T.M. Kolbaba (2001), Byzantine Perceptions of Latin Religious Errors: Themes and Changes from 850 to 1350, in A.E. Laiou R.P. Mottahedeh[eds.](2001),pp.117143. 13 See, for example, the scene from the Bayeux Tapestry interpretation of the Battle of Hastings (1066). On the extreme left is Bishop Odo, wearing what may be a hauberk of scale armour and carrying a mace of cudgel form, while on the extremeright,WilliamofNormandyraiseshishelmetbyitsnasal[D.EdgeJ.M.Paddock(1988),p.31]. 14E.Zachariadou(1996),pp.3132. 15E.Zachariadou(1996),pp.2861. 16Seenote3.
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contributed to the decline of monasticisms social functions17 to the extent that organized charitableactivitiesbecamealmostimpossible. Sensibly, the inhabitants of several nonVenetiandominated cities and villages under the guidance of Orthodox prelates or monks gradually adopted an intense hostile attitude towards the RomanCatholic world, which, later, paved the way to the Ottoman occupation of the Balkans18. Yet, we are still unaware of the popular feelings of Orthodox Christians towards westernChristianityinVenetiandominatedterritories19. Lying between East and West, Epiros20 were among the remotest provinces of the Balkans. Their limited natural resources, inaccessible shores, swampy plains and compact mountainchainscutthemofffrommostofthearterialroadsoftheBalkanPeninsulaandmade them a province of secondaryimportance. It was only the Ionian Islands, the Epirotic portsand the Otranto straits that were Epiros constant bridgehead towards the Apennine peninsula.For, when a Balkan state assumed power, it attempted unceasingly to control the Epirotic coasts in order to keep an eye on the opposite shore. Correspondingly, whenever a great power rose in the Italian peninsula, it felt the urge to take control of the passages and the opposite coasts. Access to the Balkan centres was chiefly made possible by the Via Egnatia21, whose major ports in the Adriatic, Durrs and Vlor, were among the most important cities of Epiros. Thus, the provinces of Epiros were before all a border district of great strategic importance, whose populationsfavourmusthavebeenadistinctpolicyofbotheasternandwesternpowers. ThispaperaimsatpenetratingintothenebulousrelationsofEpiroswiththeLatinWest after 1204. In so doing, I shall take into consideration representations of Latin soldiers, in general, and Crusaders, in particular, in ecclesiastical paintings of two late Byzantine churches and several early postByzantine churches and catholica. In late Byzantine paintings, Crusaders are identified in the soldiers from the scene of the Marys at the Tomb in the frescoes of the Church of St. George at Dhivr, Sarand (S. Albania, last quarter of the 13th century), in the scene of Christs Betrayal by Judas in the church of the Nativity of the Virgin on the island of Maligrad (W. Albania, 1369), as well as in scenes related to Christs Passion and to several martyrdomsof saints in the narthex of the catholicon of Philanthropenon Monastery (1560), the naos of the Diliou Monastery (1542/3), the naos of Eleousa Monastery (third quarter of 16th century) , on the Isle of Ioannina, as well as several other 16th and 17th century monuments in modern day Albania. Pursuing iconological and perceptive methods of art historical inquiry in one particular casestudy, the Marys at the Tomb in the church of St. George at Dhivr and correlating seeming similarities of lateByzantine and early postByzantine examples from Epirosandbeyond,IshallattempttounveilthedarkandbasememoriesleftoverbyCrusaders and other Latin armies and to weave the historical stage that shaped collective memory in
D.Constantelos(1992),pp.8889. Seenote12. 19 Dr. A. Lymberopoulou informed me that in an upcoming article of hers at The Warburg Journal she takes a different line of arguing on this issue using cases from Crete. Sharon Gerstel has attributed certain distinctive elements of Frankish influence in the monumental decoration of medieval Morea to an artistic symbiosis which places Morea in the midst of a number of Mediterranean locations where indigenous populations were confronted by Crusader overlords and where hybrid art forms arose from the interaction of two, and perhaps more, cultures [S.E.J. Gerstel (2001),ArtandIdentityintheMedievalMorea,inA.E.LaiouR.P.Mottahedeh[eds.](2001),pp.263285(264,280)]. 20 With respect to the geography and climate of Epiros, aside from personal observations, I have also referred to: M. Arapoglou (19934), , , v. 1516, pp. 4452; P. Halstead (1996), , in , , pp. 6364; M. Kiel (1990), Ottoman Architecture in Albania 1385 1912, Istanbul,p.14andV.Psimouli(1998),,Athens,pp.1921,whereadditionalliterature.Thetermin its use in this article is irrelevant to the political connotations given to it at the end of the 19th century and most parts of the20thcentury.Inourtimes,theregionsofEpirosaresituatedinbothGreeceandAlbania. 21 For the most recent study with respect to the via Egnatia in Ottoman times see: E. Zachariadou [ed.] (1996), The Via EgnatiaunderOttomanRule,13801699,Rethymnon.
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peripheral regions, like Epiros. Last but not least, I will endeavour to trace the beginning and thegradualfadingofhostileandantiwesternvisualstatementsinEpiros. The cavechurch of St. George at Dhivr is situated on the foot of a limestone cliff, in whichsomeextensivecavernshavebeenformedpartlynaturally,partlyartificially.Duringthe Byzantine period, the most inaccessible among them, placed to a higher plane, were transmuted to hermitages of anchorite monks. Considering that in some of these caves were found traces of fresco paintings, it is sensible to suggest that these caves once constituted a widermonasticcell. Oneofthesecaves,twentyfeetabovethebaseofthecliff,hasbeenfittedupasachapel built on a protrusion of the rock, approachable only by a narrow path carved on the stone. The walls of the hermitage are based on a rocky platform, on which a slanting, supportive wall ascends.Thewallscovermostlythewesternpartofthechapelandtoalesserextentitsnarrow northern and southern sides. To the East no walls were built and the altar was carved in the rockyfrontofthecavern. Threeinscriptionswerelocatedinthechurch.Twoofthemaredisplayedinthenarthex and are written the one on the top of the other and divided by a red line on the lintel of the entrance to the naos. The upper one reads: [][] [rebuilt], while the lower one: [saint]. Finally, the third inscription is placed belowthesceneofChristtheSaviour: () [Prayer of your servant, Isidore priest, along with his wife and children]. The last inscription refers to the patron of the frescoes, a certain priest named Isidore,whoappearstohavehadthemeanstosponsorsuchanundertaking. The internal space of the chapel is articulated in three distinct, built parts: the narthex totheNorth,thenaosinthemiddleandacrampedshrinetotheSouth.Themiddlepartbearsa carvedaltarintheeasternside,whereanaltarbaseofrockdecoratedwithoverlaid13thcentury marbleentablaturespolia. All three parts of the monument are painted with frescoes made in three pictorial phases dated to the 11th (Sts. Kosmas and Damian in the Parabema), the last quarter of the 13th century(remainingscenesfromshrine/parabema,theDodekaortoncycle,Sts.Nikolaos,George and Demetrius)22, and the last quarter of the 14th century (narthex) respectively23. The
Apart from arguments to be developed in dealing with the scene of the Marys at the Tomb, the Dormition of the VirgininourchapelbearssimilaritieswiththesamesceneinthechurchofSt.NikolaosofKasnitze(11601180)interms of the Virgins rightward time on the bier, the scenes arrangement and the biers cover decorated with rhombuses [M. AcheimastouPotamianou(1994),,Athens,fig.43onp.71andp.220andS.PelekanidisM. Chatzedakis(1992),,fig.16onp.63andpp.5065],whiletheoverallscenesarrangementresembleswiththat of the Virgin at Assinou (11051106) [M. AcheimastouPotamianou (1994), op. cit., fig. 27 on pp. 5657]. The most remarkable resemblance, however, is with the similar scene at the church of the Virgin Mavriotissa in Kastoria dated to the beginning of the 13th century [M. AcheimastouPotamianou (1994), op. cit., fig. 7577 on pp. 102103, 230 and S. Pelekanidis M. Chatzidakis (1994), op. cit., pp. 6383]. Archaic rendering is also followed in the representation of the conchs hierarchs, whose linearity is reminiscent of the hierarchs of the apse of the Sts. Anargyroi church, Kastoria, or St. Daniel the stylite, all dating to the first pictorial phase of the church, in the second half of the 10th century [op.cit.], with several saints of the church of St. Nikolaos Diarosite [M. AcheimastouPotamianou (1989), ,inM.Chatzidakis(1989),,Athens,pp.6679]andinparticularwithSts.Vlasios[fig.1314onp.76] and Nikolaos [fig. 6, on p. 71] dating in the middle of the 11th century, and with saints placed in medallions in the churchoftheVirginArakos,Lagoudera,Cyprusdating1192[M.AcheimastouPotamianou(1994),op.cit.,fig.61onp.88 andpp.226227]. 23ForthedatingofthisthirdpictorialphaseIambasedonsimilaritiesbetweentheportraitofthefemaleofthedonorin our church with that of Kalia in the church of the Nativity of the Virgin on the island of Maligrad, dating 1368/9. Theofan Popa mistakenly dated the chapel in four pictorial phases: I. The narthexs Dormition of the Virgin [mistaken identification] to the end of the 9th century. II. The naos Dormition of the Virgin and Sts. George, Nikolaos and Demetrios to the 15th c. III. The Marys at the Tomb, the Ascension and David to the 17th century. IV. The Archangels Michael,St.GeorgeandChristin thetypeoftheEldestofDaystolaterthanthe17thcentury[Th. Popa(1965),pp.88 89,fig.20].
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iconographic programme follows the established patterns of fresco decoration in cave churches24. Studying the iconographic programmes of ecclesiastical monuments provides several hints to understand a past, whose creators were mostly bearers of a rich oral culture who however left only few written records. Every image in ecclesiastical paintings is an exegesis, literallymeaningleadingout,aninterpretationofareligiousevent.Eventhoughimagesshape visualmemoryofhowthepastlookedlike,theuseofimageasexegesischangedovertime.The Byzantines in their writings show themselves to be fully aware of the power of image to keep memories alive and interpret the past in a way that texts didnt (i.e. visions of saints, etc.). Sylvester Syropoulos records an objection, raised by the Byzantine emperors confessor, Gregory Melissenos, to using a Latinrite church for Orthodox services during the Council of Ferrara (1438) as follows:When I enter a Latin church, I do not revere any of the saints that are there because I do not recognize any of them. At the most, I may recognize Christ, but I do not revere Him either, since I do not know in what terms he is inscribed. So I make the sign of the cross and I revere this sign that I have made myself, and not anything that I see there.25 Hence, as often images condition the way we hear names (i.e. the Virgin Hodeghetria) and feel, Gregory Melissenos could have nodevotionalexperiencewithouttheidentificationofthedepictedfigureoritsinscription. OnthenorthernwallofthenaosofSt.GeorgeatDhivr,inthesecondzoneoffrescoes, there are two scenes, one of which is of great interest for our ends. It concerns the representationoftheMarysattheTombinthewesternpartofthewall.Thepicturesleftpartis entirely damaged and only its right is preserved in relatively decent condition. At the top right corner appears an empty cave, below which a sarcophagus with an open top contains Jesus cerement. At the left of the sarcophagus, a standing angel points at the sarcophagus with his right index finger. At the bottom right corner seven custody soldiers in full panoply appear to bepetrifiedoutofterrorfortheangelsappearanceandtheremovaloftheSepulchresstone.At their left, two standing female figures, turning away from the sarcophagus out of fear, can be identified from the lower parts of their mantles. The subject renders visually Mathews description of the meeting of the two Marys with the angel at the Sepulchre, alternatively knownasRejoice[Mt.27:5928:15;cf.Mk.15:4416;Lk.23:5324:7;John19:4020:18]. Any given image not only constructs or reconstructs visually the biblical past, but also envisages links between this past and the periods present. Since at the time when our frescoes were made (last quarter of the 13th century) there was no living eyewitness memory of the biblical event, while no written account of the Marys at the Tomb records minutiae details, such as the angels physiognomy, clothing, and the appearance of the custody, the renderingof such details relies on the initiative of the artist or its patron. As will be shown, in the Marys at the Tomb, the representation of the soldiers of the Sepulchres custody manipulates visual memory of the distant past to condemn a newlycreated visual memory of the very recent present. The panoply of the soldiers presents realistically explicit features of Latin knights panoplies that also provide a terminus for the dating of our frescoes. The body armour consists firstly and foremost of a scale hauberk with an integral coif; similar examples can be traced in the first half of the 12th century, such as in a stone relief dated ca. 1128, from Angoulme Cathedral(with an integral coif)26 and in a metal relief of a knight, part of the decoration on the
Due to the spatial limitations of cavechurches, the iconographic programme is limited to only a few Christological scenes very basic from a theological viewpoint, such as the Annunciation, the Baptism, and the Transfiguration, from thehistoricalcycle,theCrucifixionandtheDescenttoLimbo.Similarlylimitedisthenumberoffulllengthsaints. 25 C. Mango (1986), The Art of the Byzantine Empire, 3121453: Sources and Documents, Toronto: University of Toronto Press,p.254. 26D.EdgeJ.M.Paddock(1988),figonp.45.
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GrossComburg chandelier, ca. 1140 (without a coif)27. A cylindrical helm is worn by five soldiers over the coif, whose sides taper slightly towards the base, as in the helmets of the knights of Macchabees Battle in the Bible of Rhodes, dating late 10th or 11th century28 , while its top is delicately domed, rather than conical, resembling examples from the late 12th and 13th century,asafterthemiddleofthe12thcenturytheskullofthehelmbecameroundedratherthan pointed29, while in our case a nasal bar is also fitted. The legs of our soldiers are covered by chausses made of full mail stocking gartered at the knee, similar to some church effigies and sculptural monuments dating from the early part of the 13th century30. They also bear long sleeves of the scaled hauberk, a phenomenon observed in armours from the last decades of the 12thcentury31,yetnotcoveringthepalmsandwrists,asthiswouldhaveimpededonesgripofa weapon. The soldiers of the custody are also equipped with shields and lances. The shields are triangular, rather short and decorated with straight or undulating, vertical or horizontal strips coloured alternatively in red and white. These are similar to late 12th century examples32, while their upper edge is almost straight. This form pertains to late 12th century modifications of the shields size and form from large with a rounded profile to the upper edge, to straighter and shorter, modifications that took place in the second half of the 12th century33. According to DavidEdgeandJohnMilesPaddock,throughoutthe12thcenturytheknighthadusedthekite shaped shield to the virtual exclusion of all other types. However, at the beginning of the 13th century it was shortened and the top of the shield lost its very prominent curve. In conjunction with this the profile of the shield became less convex and took on a triangular shape. However, until the 1250s the shield was still moderately large and it was only within the next 20 years that the shield became smaller and its sides convex, probably best exemplified in a relief from the tomb of Gulielmo Beradi, in the church ofSanta Annunziata,Florenceanddated ca.128934. The lance appears to be the sole weapon of these knights. Their form resembles 13th century ratherthan12thcenturylances,sincetheirheadsarecomparativelysmallerastheirprofilemore sharplypointedandconsequentlymorepenetrative35. All of the aforementioned elements, in my view, do not point to a singular prototype, but rather to various parts of a knights panoply dating from the second half of the 12th century to 1270s. This is among the reasons why I have suggested the last quarter of the 13th century as themostlikelydatingofthefrescoesofthesecondphase. HavingshowntherealisticsimilaritiesofthesoldiersofthecustodywithLatinknights, it becomes evident that the image as exegesis is not necessarily an objective, or neutral interpretation (otherwise the soldiers would present Roman or the very common Byzantine features),butitcouldbetailoredtosuitbeliefsofthepresent.Moreover,whilethecombination of the scene with the one to its right (the Descent to Limbo) is very common, the placement of two of the soldiers outside the scenes red frame and closer to the personified Limbo can promote multiple layers of interpretation. Using perceptive and iconographic methods of art historicalenquiry,itiscomprehensiblethatintheevangelicalexcerpt[Mt.28:1115]thesoldiers of the custody are portrayed negatively: having eyewitnessed Christs Resurrection
Op.cit.,bottomrightfigureonp.48. Op.cit.,figureonp.29. 29Op.cit.,p.44;IdidnotmanagetotakeintoconsiderationtheEnglishPsalterofSt.Louis,ca.1200. 30Op.cit.,p.45. 31Op.cit. 32SeeforexampleaninitialfromtheWinchesterBible,ca.1170inop.cit.,figureonp.46. 33Op.cit. 34Op.cit.,fig.onp.62. 35Op.cit.,p.46.Forthis,comparethelancesrepresentedintheinitialfromtheWinchesterBible,ca.1170inop.cit., figure onp.46withthoseinapanelfromtheSilverShrineofCharlemagneinAachenCathedral,ca.1207,inop.cit.,p.55.
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notwithstanding, they later accepted a bribe by Jewish prelates and elders, who also promised to support them before the local ruler, if they upheld the fiction that Jesus disciples seemingly stole His body overnight. Matthew even states that this fiction was thenceforth upheld by the Jews to deny Christs Resurrection. Having denied to profess Christs Resurrection, the soldiers ofthecustodywerecertainlyconsideredasdeniersofthedivinenatureofChristand,therefore, in collective beliefs must have been condemned to Hell alike other disclaimers of faith. This assumptionisreinforcedbybothhymnographicalandhagiographicalevidence. The liturgical hymnographers36 treat the soldiers of the Sepulchres custody in dissimilar ways. In most cases the soldiers are presented as eyewitnesses of Christs Resurrection, yet in a nonnegative way, contrary to the Jews37. In one occasion the soldiers are portrayed as if they had not eyewitnessed the Resurrection38. Yet, in the Matins of Sunday, Sound 5, in the first kathisma following the second stichologia, Sound 5, the soldiers of the custody are literally called enemies of Christ: , , ,, [(While) Life laid in the Tomb, and the stone was sealed; soldiers guarded Christ as a sleeping king; and, after blinding his enemies, the Lord rose]. There is no literary context allowing for a different interpretation as to who are Christs enemies. This interpretation is in line with patristic evidence which, while not naming the custody soldiers as Christs enemies, clearly indicated a common belief that they were deniers of the Resurrection39. In his XC homily, St. John Chrysostome, after emphasizing in how many ways the soldiers experienced the divine nature of Christ40, portrays them not only to be more corruptthantheJewishpeopleandPontiusPilate,butalsomoremoneythirstythanJudas:Do you realize that all of them were corrupted? (Pontius) Pilate? For he was convinced. The soldiers? The Jewish people? Do not wonder how money corrupted the soldiers. If money was so tempting for the disciple (= Judas), how much more would it be for them (the soldiers)?41.
36 I followed the standard Greek version of the Parakletike, which was standardized in its current version as early as the 8th century. For the compilation of the Parakletike, see J.M. Neale (1850), A History of the Holy Eastern Church, General Introduction,partI,2,London,pp.887ff.;C.Paranikas(1871),AnthologiaGraecaCarminorumChristianorum,Leipzig,pp. LVIILXX; J. Pargoire (1905), Lglise Byzantine de 527 847, Paris; Tillyard H.J.W., The Hymns of the Ochtoechos, M.M.B. Transcripta, v. III (1940), pp. XVXIV and v. V (1949), pp. XIXX; and E. Wellesz (1971), A History of Byzantine MusicandHymnography,Oxford 37 Sunday Matins, Sound 1, First kathisma following the first stichologia; Sunday Matins, Sound 1, Fourth sticheron anatolikon of the Lauds; Sunday Matins, Sound 2, Second sticheron of the Lauds. Sunday Matins, Sound 2, Fourth sticheron anatolikon of the Lauds; Sunday Matins, Sound 3, Second sticheron of the Lauds; Saturday Vespers, Sound 5, Third sticheron anatolikon; The Apolytikion of Sound 6; Sunday Matins, Sound 6, Second kathisma following the first stichologia; Sunday Matins, Sound 6, Second sticheron anatolikon of the Lauds; Sunday Matins, Sound 8, Fourth sticheron of the Lauds; the Synaxarion of Easter Sunday; Matins of the MyrrhBearers, Ode VII, Fourth troparion of the Myrrh BearersinSound2;MatinsoftheMyrrhBearers,OdeVII,FifthtroparionoftheMyrrhBearersinSound2;Matinsofthe MyrrhBearers,OdeVIII,FourthtroparionoftheMyrrhBearersinSound2. 38SundayMatins,Sound5,FirststicheronoftheLauds. 39 It is interesting to relate that in modern Greek there is still in use an expression relating the custody soldiers with the silencedknowledgeoftheResurrectionand,inwidercontext,anysilencedknowledge;cf. (theguardsknow);comparealsowiththeFourthSticheronAnatolikonoftheSound5SundayMatinsLaudsinSound2: ... ,,.. , , , , .,;, . , , , ,,. 40 Chrysostome maintains that the earthquake during the Crucifixion took place only for the sake of soldiers: John Chrysostome(1979),HomilyXC,in,,v.12,Thessaloniki,p.392,verses1117. 41 ;; ; ; .

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To various degrees the custody soldiers were also negatively treated by other 4th century Church Fathers, like St. Cyril of Jerusalem42, St. Amphilochios of Ikonion43, Eusebios of Emesa44 and Apollinarios of Laodikeia45. Last, but not least, St. John of Damascus, to whom we should probablyattributetheauthorshipofthefirstkathismainSound5followingthesecondstichologia ofSundaysMatinsinSound5,enjoinsthefaithfultohateChristsenemies,aswhoeverdoes notconfessChristasLordandSonofGodisanantiChrist46. I suggest that in the visual memory and religious beliefs of the artist, patron and/or the viewers of the Custody at the Sepulchre / Rejoice scene in question, both Latin knights and the soldiers of the Sepulchres custody, shared a common condemnation to Hell. Pursuing iconologicalmethodsofinquiry,thissuggestionisreinforcedbytheapproachingofthesoldiers with the Limbo/Hades represented in the next scene by their depiction outside the pictorial
, . [John Chrysostome (1979), Homily XC, in , ,v.12,Thessaloniki,p.398,verses1115]. 42,. , , , ,,. , , ., ,. , , , ,, ; ,, ,, , [Meretakis E. [ed.] (1994), : () ,v.2,Thessaloniki,p.90,92]. 43. . ; ; ; [ ] . ., , , , , . , , , . [Papachristopoulos K. (1992), , ,v.71,p.91(134136)]. 44 K. Bonis (1968), : . . . /. . . . . , Athens,p.209. 45ThelinkbetweenJudasandthesoldiersisalsoevidentinthecommentariesofApolinariosofLaodikeia: ,, , [Judas betrayed Jesus for money putting aside all of the miracles that he witnessed, while the soldiers after accepting a considerable bribe, having announced the archpriests what they saw, they silenced in a profound way and spread rumoursof whathadnothappened].SeeK.G. Papachristopoulos G.P.Kounavi[ed.](1994),, firstpart,,v.72,Athens,p.306(section149). 46 . , [I. Sakalis (1991), , in ,v.9,Thessaloniki,p.150(section37,verses12)].

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frame of their scene47. Indeed, in the adjacent subject of the Descent to Limbo, Christ tramples down Death48, or captivates Limbo49. In provincial, popular fashion, Death, Limbo or Hades (Devil), is personified in the form of an unkempt, old, dark and chained man. The Latin knights/custody soldiers of the bordering subject not only are represented at the same height with Death/Hell, but also transcend the red line dividing the two scenes further approaching Death/Hell. In no other place has the artist repeated this transgression, while in spite of his provincialtraining,hisdrawingabilitiesleavetomenodoubtthattheproximityofthesoldiers with Hades and the transcending of the dividing line by the former to further approach the latterareutterlyintentionaltointensifythelinkbetweentheLatinknightsandHell. This been shown, two more questions remain unanswered. First, since the different panoply pieces of our soldiers belong to different periods of time, where did the local artist or the patron draw his models? I suggest that the panoply parts of the scenes knights (dating in different periods) could be seen locally. Being a place of great strategic importance, Epiros had repeatedly been used as springboards of Latin expeditions against the East, as during the ByzantineNorman wars (10811185)50, the First (Raymond of Toulouse and Hugh of Vermandois,10961099)51 and the Fourth Crusades(Boniface ofMontferrat,12021204)52. Yet, as Angeliki Laiou relates, The Crusades were a frequent phenomenon of the twelfth and thirteenth centuries. We are accustomed to taking into account of the major crusades, , but crusading expeditions took place often, and certainly the Christians and Muslims of the area were aware of the fact53. It can be maintained that the artist or the patron had seen knights with their own eyes. Perhaps the painter might even have kept sketches of them or some knights had lost their lives in the battles of the region and their panoplies were taken as booty andusedasmodelsfortheartist. Second, why must western knights have locally a negative reputation? While the Normans were considered by the Byzantine elites as little more than barbarians54, their reputation was further blackened in Epiros after they seized and burnt Kanina, Vlor and Jerichoin108155andCorfuin108456.Moreover,theFirstCrusadersunderBohemund(1096)en
47 Since the coupling of Marys at the Tomb with the Descent to Limbo is quite common in Byzantine paitnings, this argument is raised precisely because the soldiers transcend the pictorial frame of their scene approaching the adjacent scene. 48 Check, for example, the Apolytikion of Easter: Christ is risen from the dead; by death trampling down Death and to those in thetombsgivinglife. 49 I can roughly cite a Theotokion following Sundays Lauds You are most blessed, Virgin Mother of God, for through Him who took flesh from you Hell has been taken captive, Adam recalled, the curse slain, Eve set free, death put to death,andwegivenlife.Thereforeinpraisewecry:Blessedareyou,ChristourGod,whohavebeenthuswellpleased. Glory to you [Ephrem Archimandrite, Matins for Sundays and Feasts, in <http://web.ukonline.co.uk/ephrem/mat sun.htm>accessedin11March,2006]. 50 For a brief account of the ByzantineNorman wars, see N. Ziangos (1974), pp. 3336; E. Hallam [ed.] (1989), pp. 5255 (whereextractsfromWilliamofApuliasGestaRobertiWiscardi). 51 Durrs and Vlora, two major bridgeheads of the East were used by the First Crusade armies as a transit station to proceed to the Byzantine capital with a special permission granted by Emperor Alexius I Comnenus. From western primarysources,seeFulcherof Chartres, Historia Hierosolymitana, accessibleinEnglishin E.Hallam[ed.] (1989),pp. 64 66. From Byzantine sources, see Anna Comnena, Alexiad, 10:7, in A.C. Krey (1921), The First Crusade: The Accounts of Eyewitnesses and Participants, Princeton, pp. 7879 [digitally reproduced in Medieval Sourcebook, Anna Comnena. The Alexiad.OntheCrusades,<http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/source/comnenacde.html>,accessedin07March,2006]. 52 As Villehardouin relates, by April 1203 most of the Fourth Crusade army had embarked at Corfou, a few miles opposite the region of Sarand. For Villehardouins account [Geoffrey of Villehardouin (1938), La Conqute de Constantinople,editedbyE.Faral,Paris],seeE.Hallam[ed.](1989),p.213. 53 A. Laiou (2001), Byzantine Trade with Christians and Muslims and the Crusades, in A.E. Laiou R.P. Mottahedeh [eds.](2001),p.160. 54AnnaComnena,Alexiad,Book10:347citedinHallamE.[ed.](1989),pp.69,72. 55W.Miller(1917),Valona,TheJournalofHellenicStudies,v.37,p.185. 56S.Runciman(1999),p.74.

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route from the Epirotic coasts to the east, while endeavouring to refrain from pillage and disorder57, caused no little disturbance, as accounted by St. Theophylaktos of Ochrid58. While the First Crusaders advanced to the Middle East, they were hideously defamed, even though their alleged acts of cannibalism was more often rumoured than practised59. Having said that theCrusaderexpeditionswerefarmoreoftenthanwecustomarilytakeintoaccount,itisworth mentioningthatthe1120swerepunctuatedbycrusadingexpeditionsundertakenbyPisansand Genoesebysea,whilein1122aVenetianCrusaderfleetonitswaytoPalestineattackedCorfu in retaliation for the attempt of John II Komnenos to reduce Venices commercial privileges; it pillaged Byzantine lands on the way to and from Palestine and extracted the confirmation and expansion of Venetian commercial privileges in the Byzantine Empire60. As for the Fourth Crusade, William Miller states that Boniface of Montferrat manned his army with the ragtag and bobtail of Western Europe, who fought for him to receive feuds and titles61. Even though there are no written accounts that I know of recording the impressions left by the Crusaders to the local populations, it is highly likely that the local inhabitants of Sarand region felt no different than other Orthodox people, whose impressions were described in the beginning of the paper. It may also be alleged that, since Epiros was among the principal target territories of immigrants from Constantinople62, the immigrants must have also shaped or influenced popular dark and base memories about the Crusaders, especially those of the Fourth Crusade. Lastbutnotleast,theregioninquestionwasformostpartsofthesecondhalfofthe13thcentury a western dominion, either in the form of a dowry given by the Despot of Epiros, as in the case of the marriage of King Manfred of Hohenstaufen with Helen Angelina (1259)63, or in the form ofoccupationbyforceofarms,asinthecaseoftheexpeditionofCharlesIAnjouwhotookhold ofCorfuandthemainlandfortressesin1266andkeptthemuntilhisdeathinJanuary128564.As implied by the representation of the soldiers of the Custody in the church of St. George at Dhivr,theirpresenceintheregionmusthavebeendistastefultothelocals. Similar conclusions can be drawn in the case of the subject of Judas Betrayal in the church of the Nativity of the Virgin on Maligrad. The church was rebuilt and redecorated under the patronage of Caesar Novak in 1368/965. In the scene of Judass Betrayal, two soldiers flank Jesus, both of whom wear kettle helmets with basinets, alternatively called chapel de fer,
Op.cit.,pp.155156. PG126,col.324;thiswasonlyaccessibletomeinanAlbaniantranslation,cf.K.Bozhori(1978),DokumentetPeriudhs BizantineprHistorineShqipris.Shek.VIIXV,Tiran,extractNr.XV. 59 A. Maalouf (1984), The Crusades Through Arab Eyes, trans. By J. Rothschild, London, pp. 39 ff.; M. Billings (1987), The CrossandtheCrescent,NewYork,p.55. 60 A. Laiou (2001), Byzantine Trade with Christians and Muslims and the Crusades, in A.E. Laiou R.P. Mottahedeh [eds.](2001),p.160;cf.J.RileySmith(1986),TheVenetianCrusadeof11221124,inG.AiraldiB.Kedar[eds.](1986),I Comuni Italiani nel Regno Crociato di Gerusalemme, Jerusalem, 2428 May 1984, Collana Storica di Fonti e Studi 48, Genoa, pp.337350. 61W.Miller(1960), ,12041566,Athens,p.70,citedinN.Ziangos(1974),p.74 andnote8. 62N.Ziangos(1974),pp.4950,6971. 63S.Runciman(1984),p.51. 64Op.cit.,pp.136,146(1271),253254(1285). 65 For the church of Maligrad, see Th. Popa (1998), Mbishkrime t kishave n Shqipri, edited by Nestor Nepravishta Kostandin Gjakumis, Tirana, Inscriptions Nr. 287288 (pp. 149151), 289 (p.151 ), 299 (p. 155), 301 (p.156); Th. Popa (1961),Piktortmesjetarshqiptar,Tiran,p.27andfig.17inp.19;Dh.Dhamo(1963),KishaeShnMerisnMaligrad, BuletiniUniversitetitShtetrortTirans:seriaeshkencaveshoqerore,v.2,pp.154198;Dh.Dhamo(1965),Pikturamuralee kishssShnMerisnMaligrad,AktatKonferencssPartStudimeveAlbanologjike,pp.562566;Dh.Dhamo(1974), p.13abandfig.inpp.2833;Dh.Dhamo(1974),LapeinturemuraleduMoyenAgeenAlbanie,Tiran:8NntoriEd.,pp. 4, 56 and fig. on pp. 2833; Dh. Dhamo (1984), Vepra dhe tipare t pikturs n Shqipri n shek. VXV (Valeurs et caractristiquesdelapeintureenAlbanieauxVXVesicles),StudimeHistorike,v.1,pp.141158,Frenchsynopsisinpp. 158160.
57 58

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rather usual as from the beginning of the 14th century66. While both soldiers extend threateningly their swords towards Jesus, the one at the right covers his back with a triangular shield curved to the body of the type called the heater, which follows the curve of the body. This shieldtype became common after 1270s, similar in form to the one shown in the brass of Sir Robert de Bures, ca. 1331, in the Church of All Saints, Acton, Suffolk67. It is needless, I believe,toarguewhythesesoldierswouldbeverynegativelyperceivedbythepublic. While in late Byzantine paintings at Mistra there is a deliberate absence of Latin influences68, the Latinization of military costumes in narrative scenes is also observed in other former Latindominated regions. In the context of medieval Morea, Gerstel mentions vaguely that some evidence has been found in the details of narrative scenes, from the occasional embossing of haloes to unusual representations of soldiers at the Arrest and Crucifixion of Christ69. Even though Gerstel identifiesa Frankish coat of arms that marks the shield of one of the custody soldiers in the scene of the Marys at the Tomb of the church of St. John Chrysostome, Geraki, ca. 1300, thereby associating Roman soldiers with Latins70, yet, she didnt it with the thesis I have hereby attempted to uphold. Lymberopoulou has identified a number of similar cases in 14th century Crete; the representation of soldiers in western armour in scenes like the Marys at the Tomb, the Betrayal, the Carrying of the Cross, or the martyrdom of saints wasconsideredbyherasahostileandantiwesterncomments71. Several postByzantine churches and catholica in Epiros provide substantial evidence that such hostile, antiwestern visual statements consciously persists up to the first half of the 17thcentury,afterwhichthephenomenongraduallyfadesoutinmechanicalrepetitionofearlier postByzantinemodels. The most impressive cases, however, can be viewed in the early postByzantine mural paintingsoftheLiteofPhilanthropenonMonasteryscatholiconontheIsleofIoannina(painted in 1560), subject already discussed by the late Miltos Garidis72. There, a great number of torturers, represented in different scenes of martyrdoms, bear the form of western knights73.
66D.EdgeJ.M.Paddock(1988),p.73andfigureonthesamepagedepictingaknightwearingakettlehat,detailfroma 14thcenturyilluminatedaddressfromthetownofPratotoRobertofAnjou. 67D.EdgeJ.M.Paddock(1988),p.83andfigonp.84. 68 D. Mouriki (1987), Palaeologan Mistra and the West, in Byzantium and Europe: First International Byzantine Conference, Delphi, 2024 July, 1985, Athens, p. 239. I did not manage to consult A. Grabar (1984), L asymtrie des relations de Byzance et lOccident dans le domaine des arts au moyen ge, in I. Hutter [ed.] (1984), Byzanz und der Westen: Studien zurKunstdeseuropischenMittelaltres,Vienna,pp.924;cf.S.E.J.Gerstel(2001),ArtandIdentityintheMedievalMorea, inA.E.LaiouR.P.Mottahedeh[eds.](2001),p.264andnote7. 69 S.E.J. Gerstel (2001), Art and Identity in the Medieval Morea, in A.E. Laiou R.P. Mottahedeh [eds.] (2001), pp. 264 265andnote6onp.264. 70Op.cit.,pp.278279andfig.15. 71 Such Latinized soldiers appear in at least the following churches: 1) Archangel Michael at Kavalariana Selinou, 1327/28,scenesoftheBetrayal,CarryingoftheCrossandMarysattheTomb;2)HagiosNikolaosatMazaApokoronou, 1325/26,sceneoftheMarysattheTomb;3)andHagiosGeorgiosatAnydroiSelinou,1323,sceneofSaintGeorgebefore of the Governor. For these scenes, see A. Lymberopoulou (2002), The Church of the Archangel Michael at Kavalariana: Art and Society on FourteenthCentury VenetianDominated Crete, doctoral thesis submitted at the Centre for Byzantine, Ottoman and Modern Greek Studies, University of Bimirngham, Birmingham, passim. I am indebted to the author for bringing these monuments into my attention. I did not manage to consider M. VassilakisMavrakakis (982) Western Influences on the Fourteenth Century Art of Crete, Jahrbuch der sterreichischen Byzantinistik, v. 32/5 [XVI. Internationaler Byzantinistenkongress (Wien, 4.9. Oktober 1981), 2, 5], pp. 301311; and S. PapadakiOekland (1992), 14.o;,inKypraiou[ed.](1992),. ,v.2,Athens,pp.491516. 72 M. Garidis (1999), . () , 1560,in M. Garidis A. Paliouras [eds.] (1999), . 70012921992,Ioannina,pp.6575. 73 Among the several examples that can be mentioned here I choose only: 1) The martyrdom of St. Tarachos [M. Garidis A. Paliouras[eds.] (1993), p. 95, fig. 144], whose torturers helmet is comparable to 14th century examples [e.g. the

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Exceptionally interesting is the martyrdom of St. Vincent, represented on the southern wall of the Lite; the saints executioner is engaged into chivalric dancing figure before he effects the finalattackthefatalattackagainstthesaint74.InthemartyrdomofSt.Babylasandhisdisciples, a figure, identified by Garidis as a Spanish merchant, stands before the ruler75. Very similar to an equestrian harness of Otto Heinrich, Count Palatine of the Rhine, dating 1530s and other German armours dating from the first quarter of the 16th century are the mounted knight who tortures St. Amphilochios, Bishop of Ikonion, by dragging him behind his galloping horse76. Similarmodelshave,undoubtedly,beenutilizedtorepresenttheexecutionersofSt.Stephenthe Younger,theConfessor77.PatronizedbytherenownedfamilyofPhilantropenoi,whomigrated from Constantinople due to its growing proLatin support, the Monastery of St. Nikolaos of Philanthropenon virtually provides the most palpable examples of antiwestern pictorial statements. Similar, yet far less impressive examples can also be found in other 16th century monuments of the region. The scene of the Betrayal of Jesus in the church of St. Athanasios at Goranxhi, Dropull (Gjirokastr region) dates in 1524 and imitates panoplies of the 12th and 13th centuries78.InthecatholiconofNtiliouMonastery,ontheIsleofIoannina(1542/3),thescenesof Christs Derision, the Route to Golgotha, the Carrying of the Cross, the Ascent to the Cross and theMarysattheTombcontainsoldiersdepictedinawestern14thand15thcenturyfashion79;yet, western influences in the armoury of several military saints indicates trends that may shadow the strength of the hereby presented thesis80. However, the persistence of such examples point to the contrary. Cases indicating the Latinization of soldiers can also be found in the third 16th century monastery on the Isle of Ioannina, the Eleousa Monastery (third quarter of the 165th century), in the representations of Christs Derision, Pilate and His Suite, the Carrying of and Ascent to the Cross81. From other 16th century monuments in the regions of Epiros we can cite the church of the Transfiguration at Veltsista (1568)82, that of St. Nikolaos at Krapsi (1563)83, the narthex of Barlaam Monastery, Meteora (1566)84, the church of St. Demetrios at Veltsista (1558
representation of Sir Geoffrey Luttrell from the Luttrell Psalter, ca. 1340, D. Edge J.M. Paddock (1988), p. 67; cf. the openatthefrontandloweringatthesidesItaliansalletca.1480,op.cit.,p.121,figureabove,ortheKnightsTilting,from the Ordinance of Chivalry, 15th century English illuminated manuscript by St. John Astley, op. cit., p. 159]. 2) The martyrdom of St. Epicharis [M. Garidis A. Paliouras [eds.] (1993), p. 113, fig. 170, 172], whose torturers overcoat and helmet is comparable to 16th century western harnesses [e.g. the equestrian harness of Otto Heinrich, Count Palatine of the Rhine, ca. 153.0s, D. Edge J.M. Paddock (1988), p. 175]. 3) The beheading of St. John the Baptist [M. Garidis A. Paliouras [eds.] (1993), p. 174, fig. 291], whose executioners helmet and overcoat is comparable to 14th century examples. 74M.GaridisA. Paliouras[eds.](1993),pp.9697,fig.145146.Forsimilarfigures, seetheexecutionerofSt.Marcianus, op.cit.,p.103,fig.161. 75Op.cit.,pp.7879,fig.112,116. 76Op.cit.,pp.105,107,fig.160,162incomparisonwithD.EdgeJ.M.Paddock(1988),pp.142(up),143(up),and175. 77 M. Garidis A. Paliouras [eds.] (1993), pp. 114115, fig. 174, 176 in comparison with D. Edge J.M. Paddock (1988), pp.142(up),143(up),and175. 78Thechurchinquestioninunpublished.Forthecomparison,seeD.EdgeJ.M.Paddock(1988),pp.84ff. 79 T. LivaXanthaki (1993), figs. 385, 387 and 293 on pp. 231, 232 and 238 respectively; cf. D. Edge J.M. Paddock (1988), pp.84ff.]. 80Op.cit.,figs.391and408onpp.235and244. 81B.Papadopoulou(1993),figs.455459onpp.277279;cf.D.EdgeJ.M.Paddock(1988),pp.84ff. 82 See the scenes of the Massacre of the Innocent, the Betrayal, Christs Judgement by Annas, Caiaphas and Pontius Pilate, the Derision and the Carrying of the Cross, the Ascent to the Cross and the Crucifixion, Joseph of Arimatheia beforePilateandtheMarysattheTomb[seeA.StavropoulouMakri(1989),figs.14b,19b,20,21ab,2224,26and2829 (details),31aand33b;cf.D.EdgeJ.M.Paddock(1988),pp.84ff.]. 83 Martyrdom of St. Demetrios [A. StavropoulouMakri (1989), pp. 137153, fig. 54a; cf. D. Edge J.M. Paddock (1988), pp.84ff.]. 84 Martyrdoms of saints. [A. StavropoulouMakri (1989), pp. 157167, figs. 56a, 57; cf. D. Edge J.M. Paddock (1988), pp. 84ff.].

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1568)85, the narthex of Dryano Monasterys catholicon (last quarter of the 16th century)86 and the churchofSt.NikolaosatDhuvjan,Dropull(endofthe16thcentury)87. The 17th century also offers some good examples, while the phenomenon clearly fades out in unsophisticated imitations towards the 18th century. One can cite the Martyrdom of St. TheodoreStratelatesinthechurchoftheDormitionoftheVirginatzervat,Dropull(1603)88,the Massacre of the Innocents in the catholicon of Ravenia Monastery, Dropull (second quarter of the 17th century)89 and the Carrying of the Cross in the naos of the catholicon of the Transfiguration Monastery at Mingul, Gjirokastr (1666)90. From distant memories of the phenomenon in the 18th century we could cite the martyrdoms of saints in the third zones of frescoes, western wall of the church of St. George at Libofsh, Fier (1782), which seemingly reproduce17thcenturymodels. In his authoritative Memory and Proof of Age in England (12721327), John Bedell91 states that history, when it is not invention, is memory written down. Although the enormous attention paid to memory by philosophers, psychologists and neurologists has led to little certainty, we do know that memory is a complex process, not a recording device, and that it involves many parts of the brain and aspects of the self. We construct our memories, choosing consciously or unconsciously to emphasize some experiences and impressions and disregard others,and,overtime,wereshapethem,reorderingourpaststomeetthechangingneedsofthe present. Our memories are shaped by our interactions with others, especially by conversations we have had about shared experiences. We each have our own histories, which we have made as much by thought as by need. With this in mind, in this paper, taking into consideration representations of Crusaders in ecclesiastical paintings of late Byzantine and early post Byzantine churches and catholica, I attempted to interpret expressions of collective base memories of the Crusades in peripheral regions, as Epiros, Crete and, possibly, Morea. Further research in other contemporary monuments of former Latinoccupied territories could check the theory that such antiwestern attitudes reflect general feelings, rather than isolated cases, especially in former westerndominated Orthodox provinces. Last but not least, the paper introducesanempiricalmethodologyinwhichahistoriancanunveilcollectivememoriesofthe pastattheabsenceoftextualsourcesbylookingatandinterpretingartworks.
The Judgement by Annas and Caiaphas [A. StavropoulouMakri (1989), pp. 153157, figs. 60 and 61a; cf. D. Edge J.M.Paddock(1988),pp.84ff.]. 86 Martyrdoms of Sts. Demetrios and George; cf. D. Edge J.M. Paddock (1988), pp. 84 ff. The frescoes of the this monument date in the last quarter of the 16th century, with substantial overpainting from the 17th and the 19th century [G. Giakoumis K. Giakoumis (1994), , Ioannina, pp. 7981 and figs. 160162; G. Giakoumis(1994),,Athens,pp.2833andfigs.2943]. 87 See the soldier next to Longinus in the scene of the Crucifixion [see G. Giakoumis K. Giakoumis (1994), ,Ioannina,p.150,fig.300;cf.D.EdgeJ.M.Paddock(1988),pp.84ff.]. 88 G. Giakoumis K. Giakoumis (1994), , Ioannina, pp. 5355 and 56 and fig. 105 onp.56;cf.D.EdgeJ.M.Paddock(1988),pp.84ff.]. 89 G. Giakoumis K. Giakoumis (1994), , Ioannina, p. 144, fig. 287; cf. D. Edge J.M. Paddock (1988), pp. 84 ff. For the monastery, see G. Giakoumis (1995), , Athens wherecitationstotherelevantliterature. 90 For the monastery, see G. Giakoumis K. Giakoumis (1994), , Ioannina, pp. 114117;cf.D.EdgeJ.M.Paddock(1988),pp.84ff. 91J.Bedell(1999),MemoryandProofofAgeinEngland12721327,PastandPresent,v.162,pp.327(p.4);cf.G.Duby (1980),MemorieswithNoHistorian,trans.byJ.WickeandD.Moschenberg,YaleFrenchStudies,v.59(Rethinking History:Time,MythandWriting),pp.716.
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