THE CHURCH OF SAINTS SERGIUS AND BACCHUS IN MANI - GREECE Mani, the southernmost and middle peninsula of the Peloponnese or Morea, straddling the districts of Lakonia and Messenia in southern Greece, is a treasure trove of Byzantine and post Byzantine churches, Frankish castles and stunning scenery. The isolated aspect of this beautiful area, combined with the independent nature of its inhabitants meant that some traditions developed separately from the rest of the Peloponnese so that a distinct society made its mark on the landscape. To this day the architecture of the area is famed for the tower houses and fortified family dwellings from the period of the Ottoman occupation of Greece. Tourlotti, near Kitta Another view - Pic.t by Alexis Gl. Tourlotti means 'the domed one' in local dialect and is actually the church of Saints Sergius and Bacchus - military saints from Asia Minor and rarely included in the Mani pantheon, although it is also, confusingly, sometimes called Ag. Georgios. It is a compact jewel of mid Byzantine architecture and has been sympathetically restored to what must be close to its original glory. There is a lower section of dressed stone but above that is a delightful layer of dog-toothed cloisonné work which in turn is surmounted by a layer of diamond shaped tiles. Above that are expertly cut blocks interspersed with single cloisonné. The external windows are dressed with cloisonné. Almost square, the church vies with Ag. Varvara at Erimos as the best example of Byzantine architecture in Mani.

ICON IN THE CHURCH OF "ANTIVOUNIOTISSA" IN THE CITY OF KERKYRA - CORFU ISLAND Icon of Saints Sergius and Bacchus, with St. Justina The figures are depicted in full length, treading on a three-headed dragon. This icon was painted by Michael Damaskenos to commemorate the victory of the European forces against the Turks, in the naval battle of Naupactos in 1571. This Icon is at present in the Byzantine Museum of Panaghia Antivouniotissa, Kerkyra, Greece.

THE MONASTERY OF NEA MONI - CHIOS - GREECE Ss. Sergius (above) and Bacchus (below) as portrayed in the mid-eleventh-century mosaics

THE MONASTERY OF SIMONAS PETRAS - MT. ATHOS - GREECE This icon of Ss. Sergius and Bacchus was photographed in 1991.

THE SILVER BOWL This bowl was found at the end of the nineteenth century in the spot of ancient Lambousa, west of Kyrenia, Cyprus, by villagers quarrying the ruins for building materials. In the centre of the bowl is a half-length image of a saint, possibly Sergius pr Saint Bacchus, officers in the Roman army who incurred the anger of Emperor Maximian. The saint is shown beardless and with short curly hair, wearing a military costume which includes a chlamys (cloak) held by a crossbow fibula (brooch) at the shoulder and a type of torc called a maniakion. He holds a Latin cross and is nimbed. A band of engraved and nielloed wave scrolls and linked circles surround him. Another decorated band of acanthus leaves and beading runs along the upper rim of the bowl. Although the subject matter is Christian, the bowl itself was probably made for domestic use, perhaps by a military man devoted to this particular saint. This is one of the last silver objects to bear the control stamps which were placed on silver made in official workshops of the Byzantine Empire. Five stamps dated to the reign of emperor Constans II are arranged inside the foot-ring. Tarsus in Asia Minor is named twice on one stamp, thus the bowl may have been made there. The silver bowl (Saint Sergius or Bacchos) 641 - 651 Diameter: 24,3 cm - Height: 7,8 cm - Weight: 922 g U.K. - London - the British Museum