Mount Athos
Rank: Top 1000
Wonder Type: Mixed
Country: Greece
Best of: Mountain
Description:
An Orthodox spiritual centre since 1054, Mount Athos has enjoyed an autonomous statute since Byzantine times. The 'Holy Mountain', which is forbidden to women and children, is also a recognized artistic site. The layout of the monasteries (about 20 of which are presently inhabited by some 1,400 monks) had an influence as far afield as Russia, and its school of painting influenced the history of Orthodox art. [More Details]
This article uses material from UNESCO World Heritage List article "Mount Athos", which is released under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share-Alike 3.0 IGO License.