Agarathos Monastery
The Agarathos Monastery, officially the Holy Monastery of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary, is a Greek Orthodox monastery situated near the village of Sgourokefali in the Heraklion region of central Crete, Greece. It is built in a lush green location that is above sea level, approximately east of the city of Heraklion.
History
The Agarathos Monastery is one of the oldest monasteries in Crete; however, its exact date of establishment is not known. Most probably, it was established during the second Byzantine period, between 961 and 1205, and originally belonged to the Kallergis family. According to tradition, it received its name from a Jerusalem sage bush, under which an old icon of Virgin Mary was found. The earliest written reference to the monastery dates from 1532 and the Venetian period. During that time, Agarathos was a very wealthy monastery, with many of its monks originating from Kythira. During the Ottoman occupation of Crete, the monastery often served as a local revolutionary center and suffered several retaliatory attacks as a result. Several important figures, among which Cyril Lucaris, Meletius Pegas, Joseph Bryennios, Gerasimos Palaiokapas and Theodore of Alexandria, have been enrolled as monks at Agarathos.The Agarathos Monastery functions as a male monastery and according to the 2001 census, it had 19 monks. Storerooms and the old olive mill at the monastery were converted into a church museum.