The feast image of Saint Sophia
of the Holy Church of Saint Sophia in Mantzavinata
(Part of an old publication in the newspaper of the
Cultural Association of Katogi “Kounopetra”)
Gerassimos Sot. Galanos
The holy church of Saint Sophia in Mantzavinata was and is a gathering place for various families of the village. The date 1693 has been identified in a notarial deed concerning the church, which was drafted by the notary Konstantinos Meniatis. The church has been destroyed at times by earthquakes, particularly by the earthquake of ’53, and was rebuilt in the same place with seismic-resistant construction.
The images that adorn the current chancel are of interest, as well as other portable icons that are kept in the sanctuary, which seem to have been placed in the older iconostasis.
In this article, I will descriptively present the feast image of the church of Saint Sophia, which is in the current chancel. For reasons of capacity, I will not mention the synaxarion of Saint Sophia and her three daughters in relation to their depicted martyrdoms, as this was addressed in a previous article, in the 1st part.
It is a wonderful and unique image, large in size, unsigned, which depicts Saint Sophia standing upright with a cross in her left hand and to her right and left, there are three miniatures with the martyrdoms of her three daughters and her own. They were martyred during the reign of Hadrian (117-138). This different iconography of Saint Sophia and her three daughters from the usual one, which predominates almost nationwide, but also different from the Western Catholic hagiographic style, is the reason that makes this particular image unique and noteworthy.
Also, the plastic movement and the wonderful detail of the forms and the scenes of the martyrdom of each daughter of the Saint, the fidelity inspired by what is depicted in each miniature, show that the work belongs to a notable iconographer of the 18th century.
Commenting in detail on each miniature from the left of the form of Saint Sophia, depicted at the top: “The beheading of Saint Hope.” Directly below, in vertical alignment is the miniature depicting the subject: “The beheading of Saint Faith” and the next below is the miniature depicting the subject: “The beheading of Saint Love.”
To the right of the form of Saint Sophia, there are three more miniatures in vertical alignment with the same dimensions as those on her left, depicting scenes of martyrdom. Specifically: In the first at the top right from the body of the Saint is depicted: “The whipping of Saint Hope with scourges,” followed in vertical alignment by the iconography on the subject, “The cutting off of the breasts of Saint Faith” and the third miniature depicts the subject, “The repose of Saint Sophia, while she prays in front of the ark containing the sacred relics of her daughters.” According to the synaxarion of the Saint, after the martyrdom of her three daughters was completed, she buried them and three days later their mother, Sophia, came to their grave. She closed her eyes and surrendered her soul into the hands of God with the following words: “My beloved children, accept your mother where you rest.”
Judging from the details of the work, we conclude that the iconographer was not only notable and a profound connoisseur of his art, but also a person who knew well every ecclesiastical theme he painted.
The iconographer was knowledgeable of the synaxarion of the three girls and their mother and managed to faithfully depict them within the time of Hadrian, without deviating with an anachronistic background from the subject he is painting. That is, he depicts the martyrdoms in a “realistic” way and in accordance with the time they occurred.
Finally, this famous image of the homonymous church of Saint Sophia in Mantzavinata becomes a beacon in our thought for contemplation and for the responsibility we all have, to utilize in various ways, with respect to tradition, the great heritage of our place.
