With this, I conclude the posts regarding Walter Hotz’s photos of the following three monasteries he visited: Megisti Lavra, Panteleimonos, and Xeropotamou.
Megisti Lavra: the Katholikon. In the original text below the photo, an incorrect year was mistakenly stated: 1934 instead of 1942.
Megisti Lavra: the phiale
Megisti Lavra: a large vine grows over the balcony
Megisti Lavra: the trapeza and a kitten
Megisti Lavra: inside trapeza
The same spot in September 2025, the lower parts of the wallpaintings are even more damaged then 83 years ago (photo by the author)
Megisti Lavra: a monk in the library of the monastery
According to the original text beneath the photo from the Deutsche Nationale Bibliothek, this photo dates from 1900/1940 and the photographer is unknown. I am quite certain that this photo belongs to Hotz’s collection, because he visited the Lavra monastery in 1942 and the characteristics of this photo match other photos by Hotz.
Panteleimonos monastery in the background, seen from a boat
Panteleimonos: the clock tower of the trapeza and the old Katholikon
Panteleimonos: the library Panteleimonos: the new katholikon. This is probably the right side of the ‘Double Church’ on the top floor of the main building.Xeropotamou monastery: view from the hills above, with Dafni in the background (left)
Xeropotamou monastery: two monks in the courtyard
A monk of Xeropotamou
Xeropotamou monastery: a monk and tow novices in the kitchen: look at the plate with fresh cherries!
Xeropotamou monastery: two almost similar photos, taken a short time after another, with three monks and a layman. The monk in the middle has flowers or herbs in his hand.
This is part 2 of the photo’s made by Walter Holz during the Second World war. Please note: as mentioned in Part 1, Walter Hotz was not part of the Nazi occupation force on Athos, but neither was he part of the scientific team that went to the Holy Mountain with Professor Dr. Dölger. Dölger actually visited Athos as early as 1941. In this blog (1444) we showed you the book he published about the work of Dölger during that period. And I can already reveal that in a future series of posts on this weblog, more photos of Dr. Dölger’s findings from 1941 will be published.
But first let’s continue with the photos made by Walter Hotz. He took two photo’s of bridges near Lavra, one of which is probably the Velas bridge at the bay of Morfonou.
Two bridges
There are also two photo’s of the port of Dafni, which was still very small in 1942:
The port of Dafni
Buildings at Koutloumousiou monastery North facade
Iviron: in the background, seen from the monopati to Karyes
Iviron: a panoramic view
Iviron: the bell- and defence towers
Iviron: the phiale and defence tower
Ivirin: the Katholicon
Iviron: a monk in front of the phiale
Iviron: Portatissa chapel
Iviron: Prodromos chapel
Iviron: the arsanas
Agiou Pavlou monastery seen from a boat
Simonos Petras monastery
Simonos Petras monastery: a monk with a semantron (with a layman sitting behind him)
Skiti Andreou
Two monks standing next to 6 pines and a large cross (with the top of Mount Athos in the background).
Wim Voogd, 28-4-2026
(the next and last post with the Hotz photo’s will follow soon).
On the website of the Deutsche Nationale Bibliothek I discovered a number of interesting old photos (53) of Athos, taken by the German photographer Walter Hotz (1912-1966), who visited the Holy Mountain during the Second World War (in 1942). He was not a member of the Nazi gendarmerie group who occupied Athos from July 1943, but from 1939 to 1945 he fulfilled his military service, eventually as a first lieutenant, including a position as a propaganda officer in Italy.
Karyes: panorama view
Hotz was an art historian and a Protestant minister and he published various art historical guides (but not about Athos). I have not been able to find any information about why and how he ended up on the Holy Mountain.
Due to the large number of photos, I will start with the 14 photos of Karyes (all in black and white):
Karyes: monk near the Protaton church
Karyes: monk with a mule
Karyes: monk with fire wood on his back
Karyes: the center
Karyes: a monk near a chapel
Karyes: the garden with Konaki’s
Karyes: the garden with houses
Karyes: a gate
Karyes: street with Konaki buildings. The Konaki of Sografou is in the background right
Karyes: street with vines and monks
Karyes: street 2: according to Georgios on Facebook this street must be near the Konaki of Xiropotamos and on the left it turns for the bakery.
Pavlos (Paul) M. Mylonas (1915–2005) was a prominent Greek architect who dedicated his career to studying the topography, architecture, and daily life of the twenty monasteries on Mount Athos in Greece, a project he pursued systematically from 1954. His Magnus Opus work, often referred to as the “Atlas of Athos,” published in 2000, provides detailed architectural documentation and drawings of these site (source: Mount Athos Center).
The Atlas of Mount Athos by Paul Mylonas, his “Magnus Opus”
On the right on the photo above you see the 20 floor plans of the areas of monasteries, each measuring 80 x 52 cm. Due to the large dimensions of these maps and because they have been lying folded for more than 25 years, it was a difficult task to get them into a state where they could be published on this blog.
But by editing the photos I took, I (partially) succeeded in removing the superfluous information and the shadows caused by the light. To give you an idea of the original size and shape of Mylonas’ maps, I will first show you an original example, in this case of Panteleimonos Monastery. As you can see Mylonas also added large parts of the surroundings of the monasteries, cross-sections of the buildings and an old image made by Barsky in 1744. Showing everything Mylonas has published on his maps in this post goes beyond the scope.
The full size of the maps, 80 x 52 cm (nr 119, Panteleimonos monastery)
In the section below, I will therefore show you only the floor plans of the monasteries, including the legend of Mylonas’s maps.
Megistas Lavra
Megistas Lavra
2. Vatopedi
Vatopedi
3. Iviron
Iviron
4. Chilandariou
Chilandariou
5. Dionysiou
Dionysiou
6. Koutloumousiou
Koutloumousiou. Note: the phiale (B) has been moved to the other side of the refectory (Γ), see here.
7. Pantocrator
Pantocrator
8. Xiropotamou
Xiropotamou
9. Sografou
Sografou
10. Docheiariou
Docheiariou
11. Karakallou
Karakallou
12. Filotheou
Filotheou
13. Simonos Petras
Simonos Petras
14. Pavlou
Pavlou
16. Stavronikita
Stavronikita
17. Xenofontos
Xenofontos
18. Grigoriou
Grigoriou
18. Esfigmenou
Esfigmenou
19. Panteleimonos
Panteleimonos
20. Konstamonitou
Konstamonitou
Should you ever visit the Holy Mountain, I hope this information will be useful. My next pilgrimage (18th) to Athos as a volunteer of the FoMA Footpath teams starts next week!
After 36 years the Chairman of the Friends of Mount Athos Graham Speake steps down on 6 June 2026.
Graham Speake on the top of Mount Athos (source: The Guardian 13-2-2016)
In a recent FoMA newsletter Graham, who visited Athos in 1988 for the first time and now almost 80 years old, says:
“It has been a privilege to be part of this team. My work for FoMA has always occupied a large chunk of my life and has chained me to my desk for hours that have kept me away from family life and I am deeply grateful to my wife for her tolerance of this. Life without this commitment will seem curiously empty from now on, but if elected, I intend to remain a member of the Executive Committee, so I shall continue as one of the old men who have always characterized our number”.
FoMA’s incoming Chairman, Christopher (Chris) Thomas, has been a member of the Executive Committee for eight years and leads FoMA’s highly successful Footpath Clearing project on Mount Athos. He paid tribute to Graham saying, ‘Graham has been an inspirational leader of FoMA for nearly 40 years, and his shoes will be very hard to fill’ (text from the FoMA newsletter).
FoMA footpath clearing team 2022: Chris Thomas sits at the red arrow
FoMA also has appointed a new ‘shopkeeper’ for its online retail operation, David Greybe. The news is that the FoMA shop will take responsibility for printing and selling the highly regarded pilgrim maps of Mount Athos, created by cartographer and FoMA member Peter Howorth.
To date, Peter Howorth’s map is still available on this site.
This post was made possible in part thanks to our reader František Červenka from the Czech Republic, who recently drew my attention to the existence of the Czech painter Jan Vochoč.
Jan Vochoč visited Athos in 1899 and created 9 paintings there, of which I present 6 in this post. The text below is written by František Červenka.
Jan Vochoč: Roussikon or Panteleimonos (nr I) in 1899: with a monk on the kalderimi, that leads to monastery
“Jan Vochoč lived from 8 May 1865 till 20 March 1920. His life journey is linked to Prague, but his traces can also be found in Munich, Paris, and the Balkans. At the end of the 19th century, the painter lived and worked in Bulgaria (1898/1899, 1900). In April 1899, he embarked on a painting tour of the monasteries on Mount Athos. He first spent several months in Roussikon, after which he stayed in Sografou and Hilandar, where he met the Czech monk Sáva Hilandarec or Chilandarec, born Slavibor Breuer (1837-1912). Vochoč remained on Mount Athos until November 1899.
The Czech monk Sava Hilandarec
Vochoč was one of the first artists to exhibit his Balkan collection of paintings in Prague (National House in Vinohrady) in 1901 (50 works from Bulgaria and 9 works from Athos). Vochoč decided to return to Athos in 1920, as evidenced by a letter from the American patron Charles Richard Crane, in which he commissioned him to create a series of paintings of Athos. However, the trip never took place, as the painter succumbed to the Spanish flu that broke out after the war.”
Jan Vochoč: Roussikon or Panteleimonos (nr II): in 1899 with with old sailboats in the harborRoussikon or Panteleimonos (nr III): now without a cloud over the mountain and more abstract (pointillist technique)Jan Vochoč: Sografou monastey in 1899Detail of the painting above (found here)
Agios Georgios chapel
Jan Vochoč: Hilandar in 1899 (in black and white?)
The same spot in 2013 – photo by the author
Jan Vochoč painted various monasteries (notably Roussikon and Sografou), pilgrims (“Poutník na hoře Athos”), and coastal and mountain landscapes. Some large paintings of Athos were completed later based on sketches. He often worked in the pointillist technique.
I have been to the oldest monastery on Athos, Megisti Lavra, several times already. But every time, it is special to walk across the large courtyard. The high walls, the freestanding chapels, the beautiful refectory with the green marble columns, the bright red church, but also the planted vegetation such as the ancient cypress and pomegranate bushes. I walked this completely alone, no other pilgrims, but pleasantly interrupted by a monk with a semantron. This time, I focused my lens on the details in the courtyard. The pre-Christian artifacts, the hinges and locks of the old doors, and the damaged murals. All that beauty is a true delight.
pomegranatepre-christianthe old door with the lockPantocrator and ProdromosMonk with Semantrona jarthe marble floora bell
The interior of the trapeza with old marble tables
The Katholicon and PhialeThe Katholicon and PhialeThe exonarthex of the Katholicon and Phiale: the 1000 years old pine on the right The Saint John Koukouzeles Papadopoulos chapel and the archondariki on the rightThe back of the trapeza on the left, the furnos (oven) in the middle and a building with cells on the right
In post 2391, I shared our experiences during our stay at the old Lavra winery in September 2025, called Mylopotamos. After dinner, accompanied by delicious white wine, we first went outside to admire the starry sky. In the distance you can see lights of Thasos island:
Night view towards ThasosThe top of Mount Athos
The next morning we first enjoyed a beautiful sunrise: our keeper took us for a tour in the old tower and the library.
Sunrise panorama seen from the balcony of the archondarikiLarge terracotta vessels in the morning sun
Afterwards our host took us on a tour of the old tower and the library.
Mylopotamos entrance to the fortyfied old buildings (photo Jitze Bakker)Our host opens the door to the old part of the buildingThe courtyard With an icon of the Holy Saint Athanasios from Lavra above the door, holding the winey in his hand
As we descend the stairs to the first floor, we first see the reception room and then the small church:
Mylopotamos first floor (photo Jitze Bakker)The first floor with the church bells. The door in the background leads to the tower, the library, and Father Joachim’s private quarters (photo Jitze Bakker)Reception roomwith a fireplace and benches with cushions. Above the firplace hangs a German hunting scene with this (incomplete) text: “Wenn wir folgen den Gottes zeichen dann wird der Böse von ….(?)”, probably referring to Saint Eustasios (?).and on the left wall a beautiful mural of the Three ArchangelsA mural with saints above the door to the churchIcon of Ag. Eustathios
In the slideshow below you can view the murals in the narthex (the first room) and the iconostasis in the church.
The narthex and the door to the church
Murals in the upper part of narthex
Detail on the left side
Detail in the niche in the middle
Detail on the right side
Mural in a niche in the lower part
The iconostasis
A window overlooking the sea
Before ascending to the tower, we had the rare opportunity to peek into Father Ioachim’s private quarters and onto his balcony overlooking the waters of Athos’ coast:
The east coast of Athos, towards Iviron.
Finally, we were invited to climb the tower and enter the library.
The library of Mylopotamos
On the way up we saw some interesting things in the old tower, which I’ll show you in the slideshow below:
Antique stones
in detail
an old travel chest with a grinder
an old travel chest
Wooden panles
An old source to supply the tower with water in case of emergency
An iron door
Old keys
A view from the towerand the vineyards seen from the tower.Mylopotamos “beach”
And right at the end of the beach is a building that used to be a windmill, but is now no longer in use.
Due to the attention of our loyal reader Vasilis, who made me aware of the Facebook page of Stefanos Pasvantis, who discovered the 8 old Athos pictures, I am able to present these rare and old Athos photos.
The photographs were taken by the Danish archaeologist Karl Frederik Kinch (1853-1921), who travelled extensively in Greece, Turkey and Italy from 1885 onwards and did pioneering work on the Arch of Galerius in Thessaloniki. He was particularly interested in the monuments of Macedonia and of the Macedonian peninsula Chalkidiki. Apparently he also visited the Holy Mountain, as evidenced by the 8 photos he took there, which have recently been published on Facebook. The visit to Athos must have taken place sometime between 1885 and 1890.
After further research I discovered that 6 of his photographs can be found in high resolution on the website of the Royal Library of Denmark (Den Konlige Bibliothek). I have not been able to find out why this library has only 6 photographs in its archive and how Stefanos Pasvantis managed to find the photographs of Simonopetras and Dionysiou.
The 8 photos are from the following monasteries and locations:
Karakallou (photos from Konlige Bibliothek)
Agiou Pavlou (photos from Konlige Bibliothek)
Simonospetras (photos from Facebook)
Stavronikita and the Holy Mountain (photos from Konlige Bibliothek)
Dionysiou (photos from Facebook)
Vatopedi (photos from Konlige Bibliothek)
Arsanas Chilandariou (photos from Konlige Bibliothek) and
a cell near Karyes and the Holy Mountain.
To compare the situation 119 years ago with that of today, I have added recent photos from my archive.
1. Karakallou
Konlige Bibliothek: Karakallou in 1885-1890A detailed screenshot of the high resolution photo: the left side of north wing with its balconies Another detailed sscreenshot of the right side of North wing: notice the shadow of a monk in the middle on a balcony. A detail of the background: on the left the cell of Ag. Christoforos and on the right an neraby unknown cell (that does not excist anymore?).Karakallou in 2014 (photo by the author)
2. Agiou Pavlou
Konlige Bibliothek: Agiou Pavlou 1885-1890Agiou Pavlou in 2019 in full color (photo by the author). Notice that many of its balconies have disappeared in the meanwhile.
3. Simonospetras
Simonospetras in 1885-1890 (Facebook page of Stefanos Pasvantis)Detail of Simonospetras in 1885-1890 (Facebook page of Stefanos Pasvantis). Notice that the aqueduct is still visible from this side, also see recent photo below.Simonospetras in 2015: the aqueduct is no longer visible from this side (photo by Jitze Bakker)
4. Stavronikita and the Holy Mountain
Konlige Bibliothek: Stavronikita and the Holy Mountain 1885-1890A detail of the high resolution photo Stavronikita and the Holy Mountain in 2024 (photo by the author)
5. Dionysiou
Dionysiou in 1885-1890 (Facebook page of Stefanos Pasvantis)Detail of the monastery in 1885-1890Dionysiou in 2009: what did change in approximate 119 years? (photo by the author)
6. Vatopedi
Konlige Bibliothek: Vatopedi and its arsanas 1885-1890Detail: a general view of the monasteryDetail: the buildings near the entrance to the monasteryDetail: the arsanas buildings of the monasteryVatopedi in 2012 (photo by the author)
7. Arsanas Chilandariou
Konlige Bibliothek: Arsanas Chilandariou 1885-1890Detail of the arsanas building in 1885-1890Detail: to the right of the arsanas is a small shed with several piles of a harvest of certain crops (?)The arsanas of Chilandariou in 2013 (photo by the author)The ruins of the shed near arsanas Chilandariou in 2013 (photo by the author)
8. the cell near Karyes and the Holy Mountain
Konlige Bibliothek: the cell near Karyes and the Holy Mountain 1885-1890Detail: the cell near Karyes. I haven’t been able to determine which cell it is or whether it still exists after 119 years.Almost the same location in 2024 (photo by the author)
Wim Voogd, 4-3-2026 (credits for Stefanos Pasvantis and Vasilis)
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