Panagia Kanala (

Greek Greek may refer to: Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor of all kno ...

: Παναγιά Κανάλα) refers to an

Eastern Orthodox Eastern Orthodoxy, otherwise known as Eastern Orthodox Christianity or Byzantine Christianity, is one of the three main Branches of Christianity, branches of Chalcedonian Christianity, alongside Catholic Church, Catholicism and Protestantism ...

icon An icon () is a religious work of art, most commonly a painting, in the cultures of the Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox, Catholic Church, Catholic, and Lutheranism, Lutheran churches. The most common subjects include Jesus, Mary, mother of ...

of the

Virgin Mary Mary was a first-century Jewish woman of Nazareth, the wife of Saint Joseph, Joseph and the mother of Jesus. She is an important figure of Christianity, venerated under titles of Mary, mother of Jesus, various titles such as Perpetual virginity ...

and the

Sanctuary A sanctuary, in its original meaning, is a sacred space, sacred place, such as a shrine, protected by ecclesiastical immunity. By the use of such places as a haven, by extension the term has come to be used for any place of safety. This seconda ...

under the same name hosting the icon, in Kanala, on the Greek island of

Kythnos Kythnos (, ), commonly called Thermia (), is a Greek island and Communities and Municipalities of Greece, municipality in the Western Cyclades between Kea (island), Kea and Serifos. It is from the Athenian harbor of Piraeus. The municipality Kythn ...

The icon

The icon depicting the Virgin Mary holding Jesus to her right side and leaning her head slightly towards him, is an example of

post-Byzantine art Cretan school describes an important school of icon painting, under the umbrella of post-Byzantine art, which flourished while Crete was under Venetian rule during the late Middle Ages, reaching its climax after the fall of Constantinople, beco ...

and is considered to be the work of the hagiographer Emmanuel Skordilis. The icon measures 1m x 0.80m. In this icon, the figure of the Virgin Mary is depicted holding Christ in her arms with her left hand. To the left and right are the Archangels Gabriel and

Michael Michael may refer to: People * Michael (given name), a given name * he He ..., a given name * Michael (surname), including a list of people with the surname Michael Given name * Michael (bishop elect)">Michael (surname)">he He ..., a given nam ...

. According to the local tradition, the icon was miraculously found at night by fishermen in the waters between

and

Serifos Serifos () is a Greek island in the Aegean Sea, located in the western Cyclades, south of Kythnos and northwest of Sifnos. It is part of the Milos regional unit. The area is and the population was 1,241 at the 2021 census. It is located about ...

. The fishermen carried the icon to their village,

Dryopida Dryopida () is a village and a community in Kythnos island, Greece. It most likely got its name from the first residents of the island, the Dryopes. It is declared as a traditional settlement because of its architecture. The community has an esti ...

. Then, according to the same legend, the Virgin Mary appeared in the sleep of the fishermen and indicated to them the place where the church was to be built. The icon is considered as "

Wonderworking Thaumaturgy () is the practical application of magic to effect change in the physical world. Historically, thaumaturgy has been associated with the manipulation of natural forces, the creation of wonders, and the performance of magical feats th ...

The Church

The icon is kept in the homonymous church in the village of Kanala in

, in the southeastern part of the island. The original church was a makeshift construction of small size. In 1869 the original building was demolished and a new one was erected in its place, which with the contribution of the residents of Dryopida evolved over time to its present form, with the most significant changes to the site taking place after 1946. In 1973 the church of Panagia Kanala was recognized as a Holy Pilgrimage by decree of the Holy Synod of the

Church of Greece The Church of Greece (, ), part of the wider Greek Orthodox Church, is one of the autocephalous churches which make up the communion of Eastern Orthodox Christianity. Its canonical territory is confined to the borders of Greece prior to th ...

. The courtyard of the church is decorated with stone arches, terraces, dry stone walls and flowers and has a cobbled square.

The celebration

Panagia Kanala is the patron saint of Kythnos and is considered as one of the most important places of pilgrimage in the

Cyclades The CYCLADES computer network () was a French research network created in the early 1970s. It was one of the pioneering networks experimenting with the concept of packet switching and, unlike the ARPANET, was explicitly designed to facilitate i ...

. She is celebrated every 15 August and from 1 August every afternoon, the sequence of the invocation canon or paraklisi is conducted, until 13 August, when the

Vigil A vigil, from the Latin meaning 'wakefulness' ( Greek: , or ), is a period of purposeful sleeplessness, an occasion for devotional watching, or an observance. The Italian word has become generalized in this sense and means 'eve' (as in "on t ...

("overnight vigil") is chanted in her honor. On the eve of the celebration, the

Great Vespers Vespers /ˈvɛspərz/ () is a liturgy of evening prayer, one of the canonical hours in Catholic (both Latin and Eastern Catholic liturgical rites), Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox, Anglican, and Lutheran liturgies. The word for this prayer ...

are chanted, followed by a great festival in the village with traditional music and dancing. The festivities culminate on the day of the celebration, when the liturgy is celebrated, followed by a procession of the icon of the Virgin Mary through the village. The procession ends at the pier where there is a re-enactment of the finding of the icon of the Virgin Mary. Another festival in honor of the Virgin Mary is held on 8 September, accompanied by a traditional feast.

References

Bibliography

* Konstantinos Gonidis, ''Παναγία Κανάλα'', Έκδοσις Ομώνυμου Ιερού Προσκυνήματος, Kythnos 1998 * Giorgis Venetoulias, Του νησιού μου, Παραδόσεις της Κύθνου, En Plo, Athens 2018. {{Churches in Greece Eastern Orthodox church buildings in Greece Kythnos Churches in Greece Shrines to the Virgin Mary Eastern Orthodox icons of the Virgin Mary