The Monastery of St.

Abercius at Kurşunlu (Elegmi) in Bithynia

Author(s): Cyril Mango
Source: Dumbarton Oaks Papers , 1968, Vol. 22 (1968), pp. 169-176
Published by: Dumbarton Oaks, Trustees for Harvard University

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 THE MONASTERY OF ST. ABERCIUS AT KURSUNLU (ELEGMI) IN BITHYNIA*

CYRIL MANGO

T HE village of Kursunlu is situated on fication of Kursunlu with Elegmi rests on

the southern shore of the gulf of Gem- local tradition which is at least as old as the
lik about 12 km. east of Mudanya.1 Prior eighteenth century3 and which we see no
to 1922 it was a predominantly Greek village reason to question. In the early nineteenth
century the Christian community of Kursunlu
commonly known as Atypo*S or AiyovpoO5,
a corruption of its mediaeval name Elegmi appears to have attained a level of relative
(from the accusative 'EhAypojS)." The identi- prosperity and was able to build two churches.
The older of the two, now used as a dwelling
* This note is the result of two trips to Kur-
house, is situated in the upper part of the
sunlu, the first in 1962, the second in 1967. The
author wishes to thank his travelling compan- village and preserves the following inscription
ions, Dr. Nezih Firath, Mr. E. J. W. Hawkins, which we found lying in its courtyard (fig. I):4
and Professor Ihor Sevienko. The plan of the
church was measured in 1962 by the author and [+ Oi]Tros 6 0edog va6 TC-v wrrappeyi-
Mr. Hawkins. Some of the photographs repro- [o-rcov] -Tactapxc'v, &vryrp0er 1K h 6 -
duced here were taken by Professor Sev'enko.
[epov K]crra -ro acoy -ro' KTcr r jlai-
1 See B. Ph. Adamantiades in MIKpaOtocrIK&
[va Aoyov]o-rov, 6r& "rrpoocraia; T-ro0 rra-
XpovKd&, VIII (1959), p. 12If. There is another
Kursunlu situated midway between Bandirma
and the mouth of the Rhyndacus. infra): the authors surely mean to say that the
2 We quote in translation the account of Kur- monastery was at Elegmi, not at Peladarion
sunlu given by M. Kleonymos and Chr. Papa- which they themselves describe (p. 152) as a
dopoulos, BtIeVltK& (Constantinople, 1867), pp. village situated on the mountain range half an
150-52, since this work is not easily available: hour distant from Elegmi, and enjoying a fine
"Elegmi (Turkish Kursunlu) lies about two view of the plain of Bursa, Mt. Olympus, and
hours southwest of Kios, on the sea. One finds Lake Apollonias. Peladarion (Filadar), described
there some scattered remains of Hellenic antiq- as a K&crTpov in a mediaeval document (F. Miklo-
uity, such as capitals, sarcophagi, etc. There sich and I. Miiller, Acta et diplomata [Vienna,
exists a tradition that there was once a big city 1860-go], I, p. 38), was known, as early as the
a little to the east of the present location, and seventeenth century, as an exclusively Greek
that it had as its acropolis the village, now called village. A few ancient inscriptions have been
Peladarion, that lies on top of the mountain. found there. See J. Spon and G. Wheler, Voyage
Next to the latter are still to be found traces of d'Italie, de Dalmatie, etc. (Lyon, 1678), I,
ancient and more recent walls as well as of pp. 278-9; Pitton de Tournefort, Relation d'un
underground conduits which show that they
voyage du Levant (Paris, 1717), II, p. 480;
went in the direction of Elegmi. It is further- Ph. Legrand, Bulletin de correspondance helld-
more said by the inhabitants that a certain nique, XVII (1893), p. 543; G. Mendel, BCH,
young prince, exiled from Constantinople, took XXIV (1900), p. 373; Th. Wiegand, Mitt. d.
refuge there [i. e., at Elegmi] and built a mon- Deutsch. Arch. Inst., A then. Abt., XXIX (1904),
astery called Eleanai. This fell into ruin and p. 311; L. Robert, Etudes anatoliennes (Paris,
disappeared, but next to it was later built a 1937), P. 225 ff.; B. Adamantiades, op.cit., p. I 19f.
small church of St. Abercius which was repaired For antique remains at Kursunlu, see G. Perrot
a few years ago. Inside this church has been and E. Guillaume, Exploration archdologique de
placed a supulchral slab, found in that vicinity, la Galatie et de la Bithynie (Paris, 1862), I, p. 12;
and bearing the following inscription: 'EvrarOea G. Mendel, op. cit., p. 376 (one funerary in-
KT-at wrropqpvp6Par-ro5 KAQiSoS, etc. [For the scription).
inscription, see infra, note 44]. Elegmi consists 3 Meletios of Ioannina (d. 1714) in his Fsco-
of two hundred families, of which about thirty ypapia wa?ath Kca via (Venice, 1728), p. 448,
are Ottoman. There is only an elementary school
speaks of 'Ehypoti KcbplP T-raviv, ro-r 8& w6,rr as
there. The place is called Kursunlu by the Otto- being between Gemlik and Mudanya.
mans because, when it was captured, the dome 4 In the same courtyard Professor I. Sevcen-
of the ancient church was covered with lead." ko and myself found an early Byzantine inscrip-
There is a slight ambiguity in this text which has tion in hexameter which we hope to discuss on
misled Gr6goire (see article quoted in note 23 another occasion.

169

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 170 CYRIL MANGO

Of much greater
[vlEpcoT]&-rou Kax KUvpiaPXoU interest
Tvi is a third church,
Err&dp-
situated on the seashore a short distance east
[XIcS T"rarr]r~S Kvpiou 'Aveipov, Ka{ 6aTr6-
of the village and known in modem times as
[vi Travrcov ?] T-cv XptorTav6v -ri~ Xcb-
the monastery of St. Abercius.9 The structure
[pas -r a]rrs 'EXEyp6v.
That is: "This holy ischurch
as yet nearly complete
ofexcept
thefor the loss
great
of the
Archangels was erected main dome,the
from but the foundations
exterior is thickly
overgrown with vegetation, while the interior
in the month of August 1803 under the
patronage of the most is encumbered
reverend with earth and piles of stones An-
master
thimos, lord of this diocese,5 and at the (figs. 4-6). This is a single-nave building which
expense of all the Christians of this place, was covered with a dome 5 m. in diameter
namely Elegmi." carried on pendentives (Text fig. A). The
The second church, now a roofless shell, is north and south tympana are each pierced by
situated on a projecting spur of ground a short three windows. The apse is lit by a triple
distance down the hill from the first one, and window divided by mullions capped with
bears the following inscription over its en- large impost blocks (figs. 7, 8). The latter are
trance (fig. 2): decorated on the outside with crosses resting
on globes and are certainly of much earlier
"O OeTos vca6 o~rroS &yvis Or<S Oeor6KouV date than the church. The semidome of the
E?novopOajLopilSr6 To hXat c opyo&0rTr~lKou apse is curiously constructed of brick laid in
aoieS d&vEK'cvfirO EK C60pcov Kalt SKTirCor both pitched and horizontal courses (fig. 9).
trrl Xpva6voveovu pocarorls -ro &pXtlercr- The bema is scalloped out on its north and
Korrov
south sides and communicates with the pro-
ATtoraTrovros0 ov 7SxTravoclroTCr ou,
thesis and diaconicon which project on the
iupfou TTapEevfou 0-ro0 Kci KaOIyouvovU exterior and are both covered by elliptical
iTTlPI.aic oiaolS acTro' KCaI a8IT&v- melon domes divided each into eight seg-
ouv8popyiUs 8 racr'av Tr~$v e~iepoG0vrcov ments. The narthex has a single cross-groined
'Exypitrcov -re Kiax "rrox&)v 6peos6ocov vault and is noticeably out of alinement. It
1v rT-1 NaCl 1838 A'yo'crrou 15. may be later than the main structure, al-
That is: "This holy church of the immaculate though the two exhibit practically the same
Mother of God formerly called Gorgoepikoos, form of masonry. Various carved elements are
was restored anew and built from the foun- scattered about the interior of the church:
dations at the time of Chrysanthos, archbish- some of these, e.g., an impost capital decorat-
op of Prousa," under the supervision of the ed with crosses on two sides (fig. Io), an
most reverend master Parthenios, the abbot.7 Ionic impost capital decorated with confront-
[This was done] by his solicitude and at his ed eagles (fig. II), a length of cornice bearing
expense, and also by the contributions of all a tongue-and-dart design (fig. 12), appear to
the pious Elegmites and many [others among be of sixth-century date; others, like a small
the] Orthodox, in the year 1838, August 15." capital decorated with what may be described
Many mediaeval fragments have been built as a cross Pommie (fig. 13), are manifestly
into the walls of this church, including the much later. Several of these pieces, recorded
relief of a bird pecking grapes (fig. 3) and the by us in 1962, were no longer to be seen in
epitaph of a monk Joseph, dated 1446.8 1967.
5 Anthimos, metropolitan of Bursa (1777- A few yards to the north of the church
1807), who built or repaired several other church- there runs along the seashore a long straight
es, namely at Bursa, Filadar, and Trilye. See wall of regular brickwork incorporating some
B. I. Kandes, 'H fpoocaa (Athens, 1883), p. 140o.
earlier remains such as part of a fifth-century
6 Metropolitan from 1836 to 1846 and spe-
cialist in ecclesiastical music. See B. Kandes, g The only publication that has been devoted
op. cit., p. 141. to this church is a brief and unsatisfactory
7 Presumably the abbot of St. Abercius. article by M. Romazano'lu, "Eine kleine Kirche
8 Incorrectly published by P. Kastriotes in in Bithynien," The'rrpaypva oO O'Aie0v. BvLavr.
Ae~r. Xptorr. 'APXato. 'Eraip., II (1894), p. 84. uves8pfov, I (Athens, 1955), PP. 440-42. Plates
This epitaph will be included in the collection of iio-II, which are unfortunately out of focus,
dated Byzantine inscriptions being prepared by show much more of the frescoes of the church
Professor Seveenko and myself. than remains today.

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 MONASTERY OF ST. ABERCIUS AT KURSUNLU 171

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A. Kursunlu, Monastery of St. Abercius. Ground Plan

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 172 CYRIL MANGO

Corinthian capital. In the

tympana, and apses sea we
by means found
of shallow re-
cessing, all point
fragment of a late antique toward the same date."
tombstone with an
inscription prescribing It seems natural to
a fine ofidentify
2500 the Kursunlu
denarii
in the event the sepulchre
church with the monasterywas used fo
T-rT irTrrEpayifa
unauthorized burial-a type
GEorb6KOv of
ToTv 'HAfov epitaph
Bcopav froi Trv'E?"ENy- ver
common in the region of
p1cOv, the Propontis.
reconstituted in the reign of Manuel
The entire interior of the church was once I by one Nicephorus Mysticus and provided
covered with frescoes of which considerable by him with a typicon, dated 1162, which is
remains were still to be seen fifteen years ago, preserved in cod. Patm. 265.12 This typicon is
but very few today. Among the better pre- not, unfortunately, very specific with regard
served fragments are the Parable of the to the situation, architectural features, and
Publican and the Pharisee as well as two previous history of the foundation to which it
applies and this, perhaps, because it repro-
standing martyrs on the northwest pier (fig.
duces with only a few changes the typicon of
14), St. George on the north wall, a medallion
another monastery, that of St. Mamas at
portrait of St. Thomas in the passage leading
from the bema to the diaconicon (fig. 15),Xylokerkos.'3
and Nevertheless, some useful data
may be extracted from the typicon of Nice-
a Man of Sorrows, identified as drroKaOOAooit
(sic) TOt X(pto-r)o0, in the apse of the phorus.
pro- The monastery was situated in the
thesis. The semidome of the apse (fig. 9)Opsikian
was theme, in the district of Katabolion
painted in two registers: in the upper one
("rrrb Trv vopiav To0 Ka-rapoMoh),14 and
there was probably an enthroned Madonna
11 For the over-all plan of the nave, cf.
flanked by adoring angels, while the lower one
Kariye Camii (phase 4, presumably twelfth
consisted of angels, cherubim, and seraphim.
The vault of the bema, which has now lostcentury):
all D. Oates in DOP, 14 (196o), p. 223ff.
Instances of the "scalloped" bema at Constan-
its paintings, had a medallion at its crown
tinople range in date from the eleventh century
containing, it would seem, the Trinity,toand
the thirteenth-fourteenth: Kilise Camii,
Pantocrator
two registers of painting on either side, the (both the south and north church-
es), Giil Camii (Comnenian), Fenari Isa Camii
upper one being devoted to a Gospel cycle,
(south church) St. Andrew in Krisei (presum-
while the lower one contained a processionably
of late thirteenth-century rebuilding), "St.
angels. The frescoes are unquestionably post-
Thekla." For five-sided apses, see G. Millet,
L'icole
Byzantine, probably of the seventeenth or grecque dans l'architecture byzantine
(Paris, I916), p. 182 f.; Ch. Delvoye, Byzantion,
eighteenth century. We have found no trace
of an earlier painted decoration. XXXII (I962), p. 540ff.
There can be little doubt that the church
12 Ed. A. Dmitrievskij, Opisanie liturgi~eskikh
rukopisej, I (Kiev, 1895), p. 715ff. Cf. Intro-
itself is of the Comnenian period. This duction,is p. xcvff. On the manuscript, see
I. Sakkelion, TTarptlaK~i ~371301lKo (Athens,
indicated, first of all, by the character of the
brickwork which is of the "recessed course" 1890), p. 136; Sp. Lampros, Nkos 'EEXlvopVyipcov,
XVIII (1924), P. 3ff. There is a nineteenth-
type, the use of which is limited to the century manuscript copy of the typicon in the
eleventh and twelfth centuries.'0 The mortar
Panteleemon monastery, Mt. Athos: Sp. Lam-
joints are about ii cm. wide and have oblique pros, Catal. of the Gr. MSS on Mt. Athos, II
("weathered") pointing. Single courses of (Cambridge, 19oo), p. 412, No. 6182. On this and
other known typica, see R. Janin, Revue des
brick alternate with single courses of stone,
dtudes byzantines, XXII (1964), p. 5ff.
but at intervals there are three or more suc-
13 As shown by J. Pargoire, Izvest. Russk.
cessive courses of brick. This type of con-Arkheol. Inst. v Konstant., IX (1904), p. 309f.
struction is found, e.g., in St. Saviour Pan- 14 Katabolos or Katabolion (cf. C. Du Cange,
tocrator (Zeyrek Camii) at Istanbul. TheGloss. med. graecitatis, s. v.) was either another
name for Kios or it designated a coastal locality
architectural features of the Kursunlu church,close to that town. This is suggested by a
viz. the scalloped bema, the unified central
comparison of two parallel texts which describe
space with the dome supported on corner the submission of Bardanes Turcus (in 803).
piers, the articulation of the west facade,Theophanes, ed. de Boor, p. 479, has KcTrieE~V
rv Ti c Kic T-r BteuviaS ~ iS v pov}v 0roi 'Hpa-
KAefov, which Cedrenus, ed. Bonn, II, p. 33,
10 See my remarks in Dumbarton Oaks Papers,paraphrases as d r v Acbv TV-rC Korraoic S EIS
13 (1959), P. 249f.
-rtv -ro0 'HpKaiiov poV Vov y?yovE povaX6s. St.

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 MONASTERY OF ST. ABERCIUS AT KURSUNLU 173
had been previously subject to the Great
follows: "We have set up those parts that had
fallen down, others we have propped up.
Church, from which subjection it was liber-
ated by Nicephorus Mysticus and made into a Nay, we have also erected many splendid
buildings from the foundations, at no small
"peculiar" (acfroSok-rro-ov)15 with appiopri-
ate rights over its metochion at Constantinople,
expense, and have encircled the original mon-
the latter being dedicated to St. Bassian.16astery with a secure enclosure."'19 The number
The once famous monastery had fallen onof monks resident in the monastery and its
metochion at Constantinople was fixed at
evil days and almost ceased to exist prior to
Nicephorus' intervention on its behalf." Thetwenty. Fishing was to be one of their occu-
pations,20 as was only natural in the case of a
latter obtained a memorandum (Trrr6?pvlpa)'18
from the Patriarch Constantine IV Chliarenos monastery situated on the seashore. The last
(1154-57) which was endorsed by the Em- article of the typicon ordains that the com-
peror, and then proceeded to regain as much memoration of the "ancient founders" (T-rv
of the monastery's property as had been &pXakOv KTrroT6pcov) should be celebrated
alienated. A grant of Ioo nomismata per year without fail, but does not mention their
was assigned to it. Nicephorus also initiated a names.21
building programme which he describes as Thus, while the date of the Kursunlu
church would accord very well with that of
Agapetus sailed from Constantinople to Kata-
Nicephorus' foundation, some uncertainty
bolos in order to reach his bishopric of Synaos
(Simav) in Phrygia: Papadopoulos-Kerameus, remains. In the first place, Nicephorus does
Varia graeca sacra (St. Petersburg, 1909), not state that he built the monastic church;
p. 119. Katabolos is repeatedly mentioned in second, his monastery was dedicated to the
the Life of St. Eustratius, ed. Papadopoulos- Theotokos, while the existing church, as we
Kerameus, 'AvsEK-ra 'tIpoo. IrTraXvoXoyias, IV have said, was known in the nineteenth
(1897), pp. 377, 381, 383, 387, 390, 398, 399.
The Saint went to Katabolos from the Bi- century as that of St. Abercius. The local
thynian Olympus in order to sail to Con- traditions picked up a hundIed years ago by
stantinople (p. 390); the crossing was by way of Kleonymos and Papadopoulos, vague as they
a place called the Anchorage of Triton (Tpi-rcovos are, tell us at least that the existing church
oppos, p. 389). The same route (Constanti-
nople - Triton - Katabolos) occurs in connec- had something to do with a mediaeval mon-
tion with a miracle of St. Nicholas: G. Anrich, astery, while suggesting some discontinuity in
Hagios Nikolaos (Leipzig-Berlin, 1913), I, its history. It may be, of course, that the mon-
PP. 195f., 273 (where Triton is called an dxpco- astery was during the Turkish period aban-
Tifptov), 413; metrical version by Nicephorus
doned for a time and then revived under a
Callistus
IV, p. 362inf.Papadopoulos-Kerameus,
Triton, which seems to 'Av&AKTra,
have been in different name.
the vicinity of modern Armutlu, is also mentioned Aside from the existence of its typicon, the
as the place to which the Empress Theodote,
wife of Constantine VI, fled in 797: Theophanes, monastery rrv "HAfou BcopW'v, Trcv Bwcpcv,
ed. de Boor, p. 471. There was another Kata- Trcv 'Ehatop3co v, "-rGv 'EAEopo prTTv or
bolos with a monastery of St. Zacharias in the -rTv 'EAEypcv plays a not altogether negli-
vicinity of Constantinople: Vita S. Danielis gible part in Byzantine history. Its name
Stylitae, ed. Delehaye, Analecta Bollandiana, has been translated both as "Altars of the
XXXII (1913), p. 183f.; J. Mateos, Le Typicon
Sun" and as "Altars of Elijah" (presumably
de la Grande Eglise, I (Rome, 1962), p. 16; Synax.
eccles. Constant., ed. Delehaye, col. 1551. On the with reference to III Kings, 18: 3Iff.). The
latter, see R. Janin, Constantinople byzantine2 former rendering appears to be the correct
(Paris, 1964), pp. 145, 472; Gdographie eccldsias- one,22 while Eleobomoi probably represents
tique, I/3 (Paris, 1953), P. 140, who places it near
Sosthenion (Istinye) on the Bosphorus for rea- 19 A. Dmitrievskij, op. cit., p. 717: r KTcra-
sons that are not entirely clear to me. werr6v-ra prl a*rirs &vopecbapcrEv, T-rvd 8 Kci
15 A. Dmitrievskij, op. cit., p. 724.
16 Ibid.; cf. Miklosich and Miiller, Acta et i-rrea-rrlpiapEv o, oilv a~ KaX l TEpa E1~rrXTa -rTE
diplomata, III, p. 50 (A.D. 1202): -r&t OIKHIaoa -roO Kal KAAMOT-ra &K P36pcov &vrlyEfpaIEv, OO lv-rpfiol
TroTS vacbhicoati, Ka pcpayj6v -rT IrrpTo-ro-rTrr povij
6aiov Bactavo rotrot lTV E-roXfov -rTv 'EXEYVCOV. TEptlei10Ea 1 at crh o-rc-rov, etc.
On the monastery of St. Bassian, see R. Janin, 20 Ibid., p. 737.
Gdographie eccldsiastique, pp. 65 f., 114. 21 Ibid., p. 769.
17 A. Dmitrievskij, op. cit., p. 716. 22 On the transformation of Helios into Elias,
18 V. Grumel, Regestes, No. 1044.
see, e.g., F.D6lger, TTapaarrop& (Ettal, 1961), p.64.

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 174 CYRIL MANGO

an attempt to Christianize a but

for Kfou (Gemlik),29 name that
even so, the passage w
remains
too blatantly pagan. unsatisfactory: for
Gr6goire's what can be
suggestion
meant by the
that Elegmi is the name expression:
not of "in
the the locality
localityof
the and
but of the monastery, mountain
thatof the
itbishopric
refers of Kios"?
to th
Virgin's trial by water Something (?Esyp6s
like v Trois 6potS ri'= E'XEY?S
T rS E'mKO1TS
does not carry conviction.23 Nor can we Kiou ("within the boundaries of the bish-
attach any importance to the form Eleanai opric of Kios") would make better sense, but
recorded by Kleonymos and Papadopoulos this point can be settled only when we have a
which, in any case, has no connection with a critical edition of the Menologium Basilianum.
locality of the same name in Constantinople.24 The second piece of evidence is that upon the
The monastery of Elegmi first appears in deposition of the Patriarch John the Gram-
history in the early ninth century.25 The Life marian (843), the choice of his successor was
of St. Joannicius mentions its abbot Antony referred to St. Joannicius, and the latter
and its oikonomos Basil with reference to named Methodius "who is in banishment
events of about the year 826.28 It has even
Ev "ri TG-rv 'EAEopcAplrySv povij."30 The ar-
been suggested that the monastery was
gument, therefore, runs as follows: If Metho-
founded by St. Methodius, and this by com-dius was relegated to a Bithynian monastery,
bining two pieces of evidence of rather une-
is he not likely to have gone to the monastery
which he himself had founded ? To this con-
qual value.2" The first is contained in the
Menologium Basilianum which states that clusion, however, certain objections can be
brought. First, that the Vita of Methodius
during the iconoclast persecution, Methodius
does not speak of Elegmi at all, but mentions
Ev Trij roTroEEo-i -roio 6pouS -ri rTtoiXoTrfS
only the monastery of Chenolakkos, where
Xiou lovaor"riptov K'rioaa FKEMIE lTpoaE-
KaCLESro.218 Now, Xiov is probably a mistake Methodius started his monastic career and
where he seems to have lived for a fairly long
23 "Notes 6pigraphiques. XII. La famille destime.31 Second, the whole story of Methodius'
Kontost6phanes et le monastere d'Elegmi," activities under the iconoclasts is extremely
Rev. de l'Instr. publ. en Belgique, LII (I909),
p. 16o. Note that the "patronal" feast of the 29 As first suggested by M. Gedeon, BvLav-rtv6v
monastery was, as might have been expected, kopTroX6ylov (Constantinople, 1899), p. I 13
that of the Koimesis: Typicon, ed. Dmitrievskij, note 30; so also J. Pargoire, loc. cit.
p. 767. 30o Vita S. Michaelis Syncelli, ed. Schmit,
24 H. Gr6goire, op. cit., p. 159, wrongly identi- Izvest. Russk. Arkheol. Inst. v Konstant., XI
fies the Kursunlu monastery with the Eleanai of (19o06), p. 249f.
Constantinople. The latter was somewhere on 31 PG, ioo, col. 1245 D. There is some un-
the Galata hill: see R. Janin, Constantinople certainty concerning the situation of Chenolak-
byzantine2, p. 456. kos. Nikodemos Hagiorites, writing in 18o5 and
25 V. Laurent, Le corpus des sceaux de possibly drawing on an authentic tradition,
I'Empire byzantin, V/2 (Paris, 1965), p. 171, states that -r6 lovaao-riptov -roOi XQvoXdOKKOV EC0-
points out that the acts of the Second Nicene
piOKETC
18i9), II,I p.
Eis31
r MOVVT-rVIC:
(Jan. 14). M.uVVCaCptoT-r~s
Gedeon, who (Venice,
was
Council (787) are signed by a DI7rTwos flyo*IIEVOS
BEs6icov (sic) which may be a misreading of aware of Nikodemos' testimony ("Eyypacgot
Bcopicv (Mansi, XIII, col. i53C). This, if true, '00ot Kci KEP&ptC [Constantinople, 1892], p. 27),
would indicate that the monastery already concluded nevertheless that Chenolakkos was at
existed in the eighth century. Constantinople (BvLav-r. &op-roh6ytov, p. 58).
26 ASS, Nov. II/I, pp. 360A, 4o6B. T. E. Evangelides, TTlpi -rtvwv &pXacto-r&rrov pv-
27 See J. Pargoire, "S. M6thode et la pers6-
Lav-rtvv liovc-v v BiOvvig, 0co-ri'p, XII (1889),
cution," Echos d'Orient, VI (1903), p. 19o, who p. 154, places it at Triglia (Trilye) and identifies
rightly points out that if Methodius indeed it with the Byzantine church in that town now
founded Elegmi, he must have done so before serving as a mosque, but he probably does so
826, and probably before 815. B. Menthon, because he confuses St. Stephen, founder of
L'Olympe de Bithynie (Paris, 1935), P. 215, Chenolakkos, with St. Stephen of Triglia: cf.
states that Methodius founded Elegmi as if this F. W. Hasluck, "Bithynica," Ann. Brit. Sch. at
were a known fact. He does not realize, however, Athens, XIII (I906/7), p. 287; idem, Cyzicus
that Elegmi and "Autels d'Elie" were the same (Cambridge, 1910), p. 59f. T. Evangelides' view
monastery: the former he places a short distance is accepted by Pargoire, EchOr, VI (1903), p. 126.
southwest of Gemlik (see "carte generale" at the Finally, B. Menthon, op. cit., p. 199, places
end of the book), the latter at Kursunlu (p. 53 f.). Chenolakkos at G61basi near a small lake be-
28 PG, 117, Col. 500A. tween Bursa and Yenisehir.

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 MONASTERY OF ST. ABERCIUS AT KURSUNLU 175
obscure.32 It is stated that after undergoing of encouragement to the abbot (unnamed)
his famous confinement in a tomb, he was TAv 'HAiou BcO v.7 In 921, Anastasius,
admitted, as a man of learning, to the imperial sakellarios and master of the mint, who had
court and even accompanied Theophilus on been involved in a conspiracy against Ro-
campaigns. But if so, when was he relegated manus I, was relegated to the monastery of
to Elegmi? Pargoire concludes rather cau- Elegmi, where he died.38 In 961, after the
tiously that this happened upon the death of conspiracy of Basil Peteinos had been ex-
Theophilus.33 In that case, however, "banish- posed, Romanus Saronites, son-in-law of the
ment" would hardly be the right word: Emperor Romanus I, fearing reprisals, dis-
Methodius might have retired to his monas- tributed his wealth among his children and
tery of his free will, but why should he have retired as a monk Ev -rij fr'-v 'EEAypiAv povi~g ,
been banished by the regent Theodora? If he where he resided for a long time.3" In the next
was indeed banished, then this must have century the monastery received an even more
happened while Theophilus was still alive, illustrious inmate, viz. the deposed and
and in that case there may have been reason blinded Emperor Michael V (April 21, lo42).P4
to shut him up in a monastery other than the At about the same time the abbot TCOV
one of which he was the patron. The problem, 'HAiov Bcwpav is mentioned in a letter of
therefore, remains open. Nicetas magister.41 Two lead seals of the
The monastery of Elegmi is next men- monastery of the tenth-eleventh centuries are
tioned in the Life of St. Eustratius, whose preserved: one is in the name of an abbot
activity extended from the accession of Leo V Clement, the other of an abbot Theodore.42
(814) until some time in the reign of Basil I Two inscriptions that existed in the mon-
(867-886). It seems that the monastery was astery at the end of the last century, but are
governed by Eustratius' brother, Nicholas, now lost, shed a little light on its history after
which is why the Saint had often occasion to its restoration by Nicephorus Mysticus. The
visit it.34 Once, while returning to Mt. Olym- first, dated December 30, 1196, was the
pus from the monastery "rwv Bco'pv, i" epitaph of an abbot John or Joachim, des-
cribed as "archimandrite of Mount Olym-
T'rp6s -rois 0ro Kacrap6Aouv PipEoUv 8taCKEiTaCt,
Eustratius healed a deaf and dumb child.35 pus."43 That the abbot of Elegmi should have
After the Saint's death at Constantinople his
body was first conveyed to the monastery of 37 Ep. 141, PG, III, col. 368f.
Elegmi and, while resting in the nave of the 38Theoph. Cont., ed. Bonn, p. 400; Georgius
church, it healed another deaf and dumb monachus, ed. Bonn, p. 892.
39 Cedrenus, ed. Bonn, II, p. 342f.
child.36 Thereafter the body was taken, by 40 Ibid., II, p. 540.
way of the hot springs of Prousa (modern 41 Sp. Lampros, Nios 'E XIrvovwlfpcov, XIX
?ekirge) to the Saint's own monastery, that (I925), p. 176.
42 V. Laurent, Corpus des sceaux, V/2, Nos.
of the Eunuchs (-rTv AvOyxpov) on Mt. 1249-50.
Olympus.
"3 First published with a facsimile of sorts by
In the early tenth century we find the Kastriotes, op. cit. (supra, note 8), p. 83, who
Patriarch Nicholas Mysticus writing a letter specifies that it was found by a peasant "in the
ancient cemetery of the town." Republished by
32 In addition to Pargoire's study quotedJ. inPargoire in EchOr, IV (1900/01), p. 357ff. and
note 27 supra, see art. "M6thode de Constan- by N. Bees in 'ApX. 'Egrl. (1911), p. 97f., No. I.
tinople," by V. Laurent in Dict. de thdol. cath., The initial formula of the inscription ('ASEXpof
X/2 (I929), p. 1597ff.; G. da Costa-Louillet, pov TrvEVacrrt1KOi, pi' pov r9rlX6?&OEa , etc.) occurs on
Byzantion, XXIV (1954), P. 454ff. two other known epitaphs: I. That of an abbot
3 Loc. cit. (note 27 supra). Antony, found on the Seraglio Point and now
" This is implied rather than explicitly in the Archaeological Museum of Istanbul.
stated by the Vita Eustratii, ed. Papadopoulos- See E. Unger, Archdologischer Anzeiger (I916),
Kerameus, 'AvaA. 'IEpoUoA. T-raX., IV, pp. 390, col. 25f., No. 28; 2. That of Stephen, metro-
397. The monastery -rwov Aiy&dpov, which was politan of Chalcedon, found in the martyrion of
ruled by Eustratius, had a proasteion called St. Euphemia and now in the Ayasofya Museum.
To &dyfov 'Aya-rrfov at Katabolos: ibid., pp. 377, See A. M. Schneider, BZ, XLII (1943), p. 183
380. and pl. vI; R. Naumann and H. Belting, Die
85 Vita Eustratii, p. 383. Euphemia-Kirche am Hippodrom zu Istanbul und
86 Ibid., pp. 396-7. ihre Freshen (Berlin, 1966), p. 87f. and pl. I6a.

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 176 CYRIL MANGO

been the hierarchical head of all the monas- with the early stages of the Turkish conquest
teries situated in the region of Mount Olym-of Bithynia. About the year 1306 a certain
pus reflects the added prestige which hismonk Hilarion of the Peribleptos monastery
house must have gained. The second in- went thither in connection with a metochion
scription, dated February 23, 12o9, was the belonging to his house, organized a small
metrical epitaph of an Andronicus Konto- military force, and chased the Turks away,
stephanos, grandson of a Megas Dux and a for which action he was reprimanded by his
relative of the Comnenian dynasty, who died abbot and by the patriarch. The Turks
as a monk under the name of Antony." promptly counterattacked and destroyed the
Elegmi appears once again in connection Christian population except for those who had
SFirst published by Phoibos, Greek consul taken refuge in the fort (presumably Pela-
at Bursa, in Trav6cbpa, XIV (1863/4), P. 136f., darion).4s After the Ottoman conquest the
with a facsimile of the first six lines. Text
monastery disappears from view until 1652
corrected by I. Sakkelion, ibid., XVI (1865),
when it is declared stauropegiac by a sigillion
p. 284f. Cf. E. Ioannidis, 'O v Kcovrw6r6A 'EXAlv. of the Patriarch Paisos I.46 It remained in the
tchoA,. XAXXoyos, III (I868), p. 83; I. Sakkelion
ibid., 'ApX. 'Err-rpoi'rr, suppl. to XIII (i88o), hands of the Greek community until 1922.
p. 42 f.; Kleonymos and Papadopoulos, op. cit.,
p. 151; N. Bees, Journal intern. d'archdol. num., 45 Pachymeres, ed. Bonn, II, p. 596f. Cf.
X (1907), p. 354. Best ed. by H. Gregoire, op. cit., G. G. Arnakis, 01 wp$-'rot 'O0lpavoi (Athens,
p. 152ff., after a copy by G. Mendel. Gr6goire 1947), P. 150f.; R. Janin, Gdographie eccldsiasti-
discusses the identity of Andronicus Kontoste- que, p. 227f. Both these authors date the event
phanos and comes to the conclusion that he was to the year i308.
either the son or the nephew (the latter alter- 46 Sathas, Bibl. gr. med. aevi, III, p. 587:
native appears the more likely to us) of the
ItyiAQtov rrepit -rcv XcopicAv TptyhXas Kaii "EeypGwv,
Megas Dux Andronicus Kontostephanos who
6-rt o-raupoTr~yld& Iali, Kmcl oi XI OTrOKEifEVa 1r
was blinded by order of the Emperor Androni- rTpoO'als,, Ki 6 -rT apXtK~$ 66ovrTrt -r~j rrpw-roKia-
cus I (Nicetas Choniates, ed. Bonn, p. 346). vov&PXCp ArllpTrpio.

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 Oi :nr~r?;lr ??

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 S" "As "z i

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Kursunlu, Monastery of St. Abercius

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 ~c;? a, ~t~t~J~.L ij~:6
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Kursunlu, Monast

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8. Exterior of Main Apse 9. Interior
Kursunlu, Monastery of St. Abercius

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 12. Cornice Block

10. Impost Capital

13. Capital of Comnenia

11. Ionic Impost Capital
Kurgunlu, Monastery of St. Abercius

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 15. Fresco in Passage Leading from

14. Frescoes on Northwest Pier

Kurgunlu, Monastery of St. Abercius

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