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A photo of Sumela Monastery by reibai –

Top 10 Unbelievable Facts about Sumela Monastery

A monastery is a complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of monastics, monks, or nuns who either live in communities or alone. Greek Orthodox is the body of several churches within the larger communion of the Eastern Orthodox Church.

Sumela Monastery is a Greek Orthodox monastery in Turkey. It is located at Karadağ within the Pontic Mountains also Parhar Mountains, in the Maçka district of Trabzon Province in modern Turkey. In the article are the top ten unbelievable facts about Sumela Monastery.

1. The monastery was dedicated to the Theotokos

A photo of Sumela Monastery by Carl Campbell –

Theotokos is the title of Mary mother of Jesus. Is used especially in Eastern Christianity. The title has been in use since the 3rd century in the Syriac tradition, a distinctive branch of Eastern Christianity whose formative theological writings and traditional liturgies are expressed in the Classical Syriac language.

2. The monastery is nestled in a cliff

Sumela Monastery photo on a cliff across Altindere Vally by Bjørn Christian Tørrissen –

The position of the cliff where the monastery is built is about 1, 200 meters. It faces the Altindere Valley and is a site of great historical and cultural significance. It is also a major tourist attraction within Altindere National Park, Trabzon.

Due to an increase in rockfalls, because it is situated on a cliff, the monastery was closed on 22 September 2015 to the public. This was to ensure public safety. The duration initially was intended to take a year but it took three years to solve the problem. It re-opened on 25 May 2019.

3. Founding of the monastery is dated around the reign of Emperor Theodosius

A photo of Sumela Monastry by HALUK COMERTEL –

Theodosius I whose name was once named after the city of Erzurum was a Roman emperor from 379 to 395. The exact dates when the monastery was established are not known due to the extinction of documentation regarding it.

However, the Turkish Ministry of Culture and Tourism places the date around AD 386. This was during the reign of Theodosius the Great. According to William Miller, a British-born medievalist and journalist, in his publications, the monastery was founded by two Athenian monks.

4. The monastery was restored by numerous emperors

The monastery has been restored many times in its long history whenever it fell into ruin. During the 6th century, it was restored and enlarged by the Byzantine general Belisarius at the command of Emperor Justinian.

The monstery saved and sheltered the young Alexios from a storm. During the reign of Alexios III ( 1349/ 90) Sumela was restored by Alexios because it once was important to him. At a later date chrysobull dated to1365 confirmed the freedom and autonomy of the monastery together with all its hereditary lands and dependents.
Sumela Monastery was exempted from all forms of taxes except for one biannual tax. To restore it, the monastery then was granted an annual amount from imperial grants. During the time of Manuel III, son of Alexios III, and the reigns of subsequent princes, Sumela received further wealth from the imperial grants.

5. The monastery once housed the Phrontisterion of Trapezous

A photo of Sumela Monastry by Vikiçizer –

It started housing the Phrontisterion of Trapezous in 1682 and for the following decades. Phrontisterion of Trapezous is a famous Greek educational institution that operated from 1682/ 3 to 1921 in Trabzon, Ottoman Empire (Turkey)

The institution provided the major impetus for the rapid expansion of Greek education throughout the Pontus region onto the south coast of the Black Sea.

6. Sumela Monastery was abandoned during the National War of Liberation

A photo of Sumela Monastery engraving portrait by Wikimedia commons

In1923, the Ottoman Empire collapsed. the independent Turkish Republic was founded at Ataturk after the National Liberation War. After the Turkish republic was formed, a result of population change was reached between Greece and Turkey

As a result of the population exchange between Greece and Turkey, the Sumela monastery was abandoned.

To be exclusive, the Treaty of Lausanne was the one that led to boundaries between Greece and Turkey. Back to Lausanne Treaty, was a treaty signed in Switzerland in 1922 after WW1 between the Allied Powers and the Central Powers.

Those who migrated in 1930, founded a new monastery which they named the new Panagia Sumela Monastery. The monastery is located on the slopes of Mount Vermion, near the town of Naousa, Macedonia, Greece. Some treasures of Old Sumela Monastery were relocated also during the migration.

7. Today Sumela Monastery is a museum

A photo of tourists as Roch Church, Sumela Monastry by Alaexis –

As I stated early, Sumela Monastery is a tourist attraction centre. Restoration work is funded by the government of Turkey. The Turkish Government is the one responsible for the restoration of the museum while it enjoys revival pilgrimage from Greece, Georgia, and Russia.

The monastery overlooks forests and streams. This makes it popular for its aesthetics as well as its cultural and religious significance.

8. Orthodox divine liturgy took place in the monastery compound

On 15 August 2010, Orthodox divine liturgy was allowed to be held in the monastery compound. A special pass by the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople was a requirement for one to attend the function that day.

To be exact the day was the Feast of the Assumption of Mary. The Assumption of Mary is one of the four Marian dogmas of the Catholic Church. Only 450 to 500 visitors were to be allowed inside the monastery.

9. Promotion of tourism was done in the monastery in 2022

A photo of an interior section of Sumela Monastery by Kortut Tas – Wikimedia commons

Sumela Monastery is a historic Greek Orthodox monastery specifically dedicated to the Theotokos. However, in 2022, video footage showed modern music and dancing at the monastery. It was turned into a dance club!

Imagine a Holy ground like a church being used for other purposes than the intended ones. Well, I guess someone can get whipped for sure. Jesus drove out those people who were buying and selling in the Holy temple! However, an explanation was given that the footage was done to promote tourism.

10. The frescoes of the monastery are seriously damaged

Fresco is a technique of mural painting executed upon freshly laid lime plaster. In Sumela the main subject of the frescoes is biblical scenes telling the story of Jesus and the Virgin Mary. The frescoes though are destroyed deliberately by people but no exact reason has been developed yet.

Visit Sumela Monastery complex as a tourist destination. The principal elements of the complex are the Rock Church, several chapels, kitchens, student rooms, a guesthouse a library, and a sacred spring revered by Eastern Orthodox Christians.

Address: Altındere, 61750 Maçka/Trabzon, Turkey
Hours:
Address: Altındere, 61750 Maçka/Trabzon, Turkey
Hours:
Wednesday 9 am–7 pm
Thursday 9 am–7 pm
Friday 9 am–7 pm
Saturday 9 am–7 pm
Sunday 9 am–7 pm
Monday 9 am–7 pm
Tuesday 9 am–7 pm
Suggest new hours
Phone: +90 462 326 07 48
Opened: 386 AD
Function: Monastery
Established: c. 386 CE
Disestablished: 1923
Heritage designation: Tentative UNESCO World Heritage Site