Evening star., 1896-10-23
AN ANCIENT MADONNA.
Some Reminisences Of Lord Byron
During His Stay In Greece.

During HIS Stay In Greece.
Correspondence Of The Eveung Star.
PATRAS, Greece, September IS. 1895.
After the Turks were expelled from
Greece a painting which had been buried
several hundred years by devout Greek
priests. and whose hiding place had been
kept secret for generations. was dug up.
1t had been buried In a hill In Patras.
which commands fine view of the sea.
the mountains and the luxuriant vineyards
of the Peleponessus. On this hill was
erected splendid church called Pendanas-
sa Ger Sarappa), or the Church of the
Five Wise Virgins. The ysupposition is
that the secret Of the burial place Of the
valuable painting had been handed down
through five nuns, who controlled their
tongues so well the Turks nor any one
else ever suspected the existence Of the
picture.
The church was named in their honor.
Throughout Greece it Is believed that this
Madonna was painted by st. Luke, who,
with st. Andrew and st. Paul, certainly
spent great deal of time in this part of
Hellas Moreover, 1t is claimed that st.
Luke made three copies Of this Madonna,
and paintings similar to it are in the Mon
astery If Megaspeleon and in convent
at Odessa. The fourth Is in the sea, for
when 1t was being conveyed to a place OF
SAFETY by the Greeks, to pe buried in the
mountains across the Gulf Of Patras, the
Turks heard about it and chased the boat.
They were about to overtake the Greeks
when the captain and the priest in charge
of the painting threw II into the sea to
avoid its capture by the Mohammedans!.
l visited the Church of the Five Wise
Virgins to have photograph of this Ma
doina taken for this correspondence, but
found it impossible to do SO. The paint
ing, excepting the heads Of the mother and
child. is incased in a thin coating Of sill
yer to preserve 1t. So the reader will have
to be content with the best pen picture
can draw. The colors have faded until
the Madonna and Child look as dark as
Moors. but there is wonderful strength
and beauty in the features Of both.
The duplicates of this Madonna. now
preserved at Megaspeleoh and Odessa are
said to be equally good. And the one
which was tossed into the sea. hundreds of
years ago, has not been forgotten. Every
time incense is offered In the Church of
Pendanassa the censer is swung toward
the sea to watt benediction to the Ma
dorna and Child thrown overheard CEN
turies ago! The main aisle OF the church
looks out on the blue waters of the gulf
and commands splendid view OF the
mountains beyond. I have asked num-
ber of educated Greeks If they really be-
lieved st. Luke painted these pictures, and
they always replied in the affirmative
They are as firmly convinced of 1t as
they are that Praxiteles csculptured the
beautiful Hermes at Olympia. In this
land OF antiquities the Christian era is
hoe AS6dAuCu dS So lOUS ago, ana i nave
handled dolls made Of clay for Greek
ch1ld1en) that are over two thousand years
old And have stood In front of splendid
marble statues that were ancient before
be entirely skeptical when a cultured Greek
tells me the Madonna T have briefly de-
scribed was painted in the year 40 AD.!
1t may be true, and st. Luke may be the
artist!
Across the gulf from Patras Is Mis-
siloughi where Lord. Byron fought with
the Greeks for liberty His heart was
taken out and buried in Missilouehi and
his body was embalmed and sent to Eng
land A simple monument marks the
spot, and every year Americans, English
men and Greeks make pilgrimages to the
historic spot. Its location Is picturesque
in the extreme. 1t is in low swampy
ground. but is backed by fine mountains
and looks out on one side toward the
Ionian sea, and on ftheJ other over the Gulf
Of Patras. The malaria from the low
lands of Missiloughie probably had more
to do with killing Lord Byron than the
exert1on OF organizing the Greek army
to repel the Turks It was here he met
addressed one OF the best known of his
poems.
The reading world believes Zoe was a
Maid Of Athens" She was not She
was born and bred In Missiloughi, married
Greek from the interior not far from
Lepanto, and afterward moved to Athens
Here she lived to be very old woman
anu TStdiucu u TIE ldSt traces OF the
beauty which charmed the eccentric but
highly gifted English. nobleman 1 met
number of people who knew Zoe well,
and every one agrees that she was very
beautiful. Moreover. 1t is said that She
preserved to the day Of her death the au-
tograph letters written her" by Esotd Byron
and handed them down as heiriooms to
her children, who now live in Athens!
Every evening as watch the sun set BE-
hind the mountains and olive groves of
Missiloughi 1 wonder If the glamor of ro-
nance which environs the place makes
tains a more royal purple, and the rose
and gold that flames In the west more
brilliant than in America, where we live
more In the future. and. less in. the past.
Whatever the enchantment may be the
sunsets here are the most beautifuf ever
dreamed OF, and the light goes down over
splendid landscapes thats-were famous in
song and story" long before America
was discovered. '.-' - 81"