Church of St. Panteleimon
Siana
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Siana

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The Church of St. Panteleimon is an Orthodox church built in honour of the Saint on one of the busy streets on the slope of mount Akramitis in the village of Siana near Rhodes. This attraction is visited not only by pilgrims, but also by all travelers during sightseeing tours along the island.

History

Even if this Church didn't have an interesting history, you could spend hours talking about the local Greek nature. Actually the temple is surrounded by rocks. They hang out over it, creating an atmosphere of a miracle that is about to happen. This is especially felt at sunset, when the Church of Saint. Panteleimon in Siana and its bell towers are bathed in peach-colored sunlight.

The construction of the temple began in 1882 and was completed ten years later. The Church was a cross-shaped architectural structure with a hexadecimal dome and a cruciform vault without a rib in the western beam. Even then, the shrine did not have the common windows. Instead, the architects installed a kind of frames with small holes for colored glass. This peculiarity of the temple has been preserved to this day.

When you are inside the Church of St. Panteleimon, you will notice that it is the small colored glass that adds special grandeur to the decoration of the shrine. Blue-green-yellow patches of sunlight and beams glide over the images, and they seem to come to life for a moment.

As for the external architectural ensemble of the temple, it also consists of two five-storey bell towers with clocks. They are located symmetrically on the two main facades of the third level on the western side of the shrine and are built into its masonry. The clock that is located on them is fake.

According to legend, the locals had built a Church with the money collected from all the villagers. It was enough only for the building of the temple. In order to decorate the columns, people decided to draw a clock. However, the images seem quite realistic. Meanwhile, one of these clocks, the southernmost, is real — it is solar. On the rest, the hands show the time when the foundation was laid here in 1882.

There is a square with a stone building opposite the Church. According to legend, this one-storey building is the remains of a monastery, which was built around the 15 century. By the way, during the earthquake in 2008, the old building was practically not damaged unlike the Church itself. As for the temple, it was then closed for several months for repairs.

The legend of Panteleimon

According to the legend, Panteleimon was born in a rich family and came to Rhodes from the city of Nicomedia, which is located near Istanbul. His mother was a Christian. After she had died very early, the boy's father, who was a pagan, tried to bring his son to his faith in every possible way. Even then he was teaching him healing. This was the way how Panteleimon became a famous doctor, and soon he adopted Christianity. After that, he started healing both the poor and the rich for free.

Stories about a doctor who cured even the most terrible ailments quickly spread around the neighborhood. Envious tongues carried the stories about Panteleimon to the Emperor who was pagan. The healer was soon arrested and tortured. But he managed to avoid some of tortures by praying. So, for example, the hot water where Panteleimon was thrown became cold, and the hungry wild animals did not rush to devour the Saint.

The Emperor was very angry and ordered to behead the healer and to throw the body into the fire, where it turned not to have burnt. Soon local Christians buried him. But the head of Panteleimon, as one of the most valuable Orthodox relics, has been preserved and now it is located in the monasteries on mount Athos.

Significant shrines

A gilded wooden iconostasis, marble columns, a huge image of Christ above your head, a giant hanging chandelier, and many faces of saints painted in the 1950s by Ioannis Terzis. Everything gives the interior of the Church a special solemnity. The image of Saint Panteleimon is considered the most valuable one in the temple. It is located to the left of the iconostasis and is decorated with a gilded frame. Worshippers and pilgrims leave wax figures of diseased body parts that are asked to be healed in front of it.

In addition, there is a part of the relics of Saint Panteleimon, as well as an icon of the Saint, which dates back to 1779. It has a gilded lining, and the image itself is considered to be the work of John Anagnostos. There are some opinions that this icon was created according to the format of another, older one. It decorated the old monastery, which was located opposite in the 10-11th centuries.

How to navigate

At the entrance to the temple, you can take and put candles. As for the rest, the Church does not differ from other Orthodox shrines.

Tips

  • Be sure to visit the museum that is opposite the temple, where the ancient monastery used to be located. There you can see sacred vestments, ancient coins and books, some of which date back to 1680-1760. Portable icons of the Archangel Michael, Saint Andrew, the Transfiguration of the Lord and the Extolled Christ, created in the late 19th century are among the shrines that were once the property of the ancient building.
  • Wear clothing that covers your chest, shoulders and knees.