Athonite tradition
attributes the foundation of the monastery to the Byzantine Emperor Theodosius
II and his sister Pulcheria during the 5th century. According to the same
tradition this early monastery was destroyed by a huge rock that fell from the
nearby hills. According to the same tradition its remains can still be found 500
metres from the existing monastery. Historical and archaeological evidence
cannot safely confirm this tradition and therefore the precise time of the
monastery's foundation, as well as its founders cannot be positively
identified.
The evidence can however confirm
that as early as the late 10th or early 11th century the monastery existed. It
is mentioned in at least three manuscripts. The monastery is referred to in a
letter by Paul of Xiropotamou dating from 1016. The will of the monk Demetrius
of Chalki, dating from 1030, is signed by a monk who calls himself
"Theoktistos monk and abbot of Esphigmenou monastery". Finally, the
monastery is mentioned in the second Typicon of Mount Athos in 1046.
The monastery greatly
prospered until the Ottoman conquest. Many Byzantine emperors, such as John V
Palaiologos, contributed to this prosperity, as did other Orthodox rulers such
as Serbian Emperor Stefan Dušan and Serbian Despot Đurađ Branković. This
prosperity was however shrouded by constant disputes over land issues with the
neighboring Vatopediou monastery, as well as by many pirate raids and two great
fires that damaged the monastery during the 14th century. According to
manuscripts held in the monastery's collection, the pirates posed a serious
threat to the monastery because the sea near it is usually calm compared to the
seas around the rest of the Athonite peninsula. Because of these reasons the
monastery was eventually ruined and practically deserted which allowed the
nearby monasteries of Hilandar and Zograf to grab various portions of land from
it, which lead to further legal disputes.
However, the monastery
managed to recover eventually, as evidenced by a manuscript dated from 1569
that tells of 51 monks working for its reestablishment. In 1655, Czar Alexis I
of Russia gave the monks permission to travel throughout his lands every five
years to raise funds for the monastery. During the same period the rulers of
the Danubian Principalities also made significant contributions to the
monastery. During the early 18th century, Bishop Gregory of Melenikon made
donations to the monastery and eventually become one of its monks, undertaking
a renovation of the monastery. Also, Bishop Daniel of Thessaloniki took care of
the monastery's finances and, with the consent of the Athonite community and
Patriarch Gerasimus III of Constantinople, made the monastery a cenobium. The
relevant patriarchical edict was published in 1797 by Patriarch Gregory V of
Constantinople, who also rebuilt the southern part of the monastery that had
been ruined.
A series of competent
abbots (Acacius, Euthymius, Theodoroitus and Agathangellus) greatly renovated
and expanded the monastery, to the point where the current structures date
almost exclusively from their time. The successor of Agathangellus, Lucas,
founded an iconographic school, that greatly served the monastery for an
extended period of time.
During the Greek War of
Independence, the monastery, being the northernmost monastery of the peninsula,
suffered gravely from the Ottoman armies that ravaged Mount Athos. However,
during this period, it did experience some degree of prosperity.
During the Macedonian
Struggle, the monastery supported the Greek guerillas in their struggle against
the Bulgarian komitadjis.
Esfigmenou along with
other Mt. Athos monasteries, sketes and monks, had been involved in a long
dispute with the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople. The dispute
continues since a "new Esphigmenou brotherhood," was established.
Architecture
The monastery is home to
various important structures. Although the monastery was founded no later than
the 11th century, the current structures were built mainly during the first
half of the 19th century. The general outline of the monastery is a rectangular
wall which forms a spacious inner courtyard. In the middle of the courtyard
lies the catholicon surrounded by the wings that house the monks' cells, the
guest-house and the refectory.
The catholicon, which is
dedicated to the Ascension of Christ, was built between 1806 and 1810 by the
abbot Theodoroitos on the site of an earlier catholicon and in the manner of
Athonite churches. It was consecrated by Patriarch Gregory V in 1811. The
construction of the catholicon was greatly aided by personal donations from
Bishop Ignatius of Kassandreia. The temple itself is spacious and majestic and
bears eight domes on its lead-covered roof, the central dome being the largest.
The marble used for its construction was transported to Athos from Tinos, the
place of origin of the church's architect, Paul.
The nave of the catholicon
was decorated with iconography in 1811 and the sanctuary in 1818 by the
iconographers Veniamin, Zacharias and Makarios. The decoration was completed in
1841 with iconography of the narthex by the iconographers Ioasaf, Nikiforos,
Gerasimos and Anthimos. The altar, the iconostasis, as well as other features
of the temple, date back to this era. The iconostasis in particular, which
depicts scenes from the Old and the New Testaments, is carved wood, covered
with golden plating and is considered one of the most important post-Byzantine
iconostases on Athos. The catholicon also has two chapels, a vestibule and a
porch, added in 1845 by Ecumenical Patriarch Anthimus VI of Constantinople, a
previous Esfigmenite monk.
Outside the southeastern
corner of the catholicon there is a font (Greek: Φιάλη), that is used to keep holy water. It was
built in 1815 by the abbot Euthymios, at the site of an older similar structure
that dated from the time of John V Palaiologos. The structure is roofed by a
dome that is held up by eight marble columns, connected by sculpted marble
metopes.
The refectory is the oldest
building in the monastery. It is a semi-detached building in the west wing,
across from the catholicon. It is a rectangular building, renovated in 1810 by
Abbot Euthymios. Its iconography, dating back to the 16th and 17th centuries
still survives, albeit greatly damaged by the fires that the Ottoman soldiers
lit to accommodate themselves during their stay in the monastery during the
Greek revolutionary war.
The monastery also has 13
chapels, eight inside the main complex and five outside. Among the inner
chapels, the most important are the chapel of the Presentation of Mary and the
chapel of the Archangels at the sides of the catholicon. The other inner
chapels are distributed at various sites inside the monastery and contain no
frescoes but house important icons. Of the outer chapels, the most notable is
the chapel of Saint Anthony of Kiev, the founder of the Kiev Pechersk Lavra —
St. Anthony's life states he became a monk on Athos and Esfigmenou's tradition
has his having lived in a secluded cave there overlooking the sea, which is
still shown to visitors, and he is commemorated on the feast for All Saints of Esfigmenou
— that lies just across from the monastery.