Because of the heavy snowfall and many rains, there are many springs with plenty of water forming two torrents on either side of the village, Alonitikos and Manouras, which meet up and flow into Sarantaporos, the tributary of Aoos river.

History and Information

Based on iformation we found on http://chioniades.gr

Chioniades is one of the historical villages of craftsmen, known as Mastorohoria of Konitsa, with the characteristic paved square, the tall stone terraces due to the sloping ground, the fountain, the plane tree and, of course, the stone cobbled streets and the stone houses. It was once the center of a large geographical area with common cultural features: the Mastorohoria in Voio, Kastoria, Florina, Tzoumerka, but also in Cologne, Korce, Elbasan (today Albania).

There is no data when the settlement was created. However, from the many Slavic place names in the village and from the words that came into the vocabulary of the inhabitants, we conclude that this place was inhabited before 1000 AD. Chioniades and the villages of the area seem to have been created by joining, perhaps, nomads who felt the need to form a united community.

In one version the first inhabitants of Chionades built their first village in the 14th century at the “Paliospita” site, with a central church the existing church of Agios Nikolaos, and where there are three cemeteries. Later in the 16th century, unknown why, they abandoned this site and settled in today’s.

“The tribes of Chioniades”

An article by folklorist Kitsos Makris titled The “tribes” of Chionades and the epirotic handicraft – painting  published in 1977 at ARMOLI (a magazine with topics from Pyrsogianni and surrounding Mastorohoria), refers to the sources of the Epirotes peasants – painters, such as Kapesovo, Sudena, Samarina (noting that Samarina, although it belongs to Macedonia, it is culturally belongs to the Epirus region), Fortosi, Kalentzi, Chionades, and concludes that Chionades was the largest nursery of painters.

Hagiography

From the 15th century, Chioniades remain in history as “the village of hagiographers” and are known all over Epirus and those who are engaged in the folk arts of Epirus.

Influenced first by the so-called Ipiroto-Theban School of Hagiography and later by Italian and Eptansian painting, the Russian hagiography of Mount Athos and paper lithographs and copper engravings, the Chionades painters-hagiographers spread from the 18th to the middle of the 20th century in Epirus, Central Greece, Thessaly, Macedonia, and Albania by painting icon screen for churches, frescoes in monasteries and churches, as well as portable icons for houses, decorating the mansions of in Zagori villages especially with topographies, floral prints, portraits, decorations of all kinds and still life.

Of course, it is worth noting that the people of the village did not follow the flow of stone technique as the rest of the inhabitants of Mastorohoria, but they excelled in the field of painting and hagiography.

The crafstmen

Like the craftsmen of neighboring villages, so the painters-hagiographers were working in organized groups. They left their place in the spring and returned in the autumn to spend the winter in their homes and to deal with livestock farming as well as with the painting of portable icons. On their journeys they came into contact with the new artistic movements that circulated in Western Europe and the large urban centers of the Ottoman Empire and added new architectural and artistic elements in their art.

Painting art in Chionades was practiced on the basis of family professional engagement. The needs required younger family members to be apprenticed close to their experienced relatives. This helped them by dealing with secondary jobs while learning with them. Depending on their degree of development in painting, they often became collaborators and succeeded or made their own crew in the same way. The apprentice painters followed the crew of their relatives from an early age.

What to see in Chioniades

The bridge at Paraspori

A stone one-arched bridge at Paraspori location, just before arriving in the village above Alonitikos Lakkos, a stream that flows into Sarantaporos river. It was built in 1866 according to an inscription written on a stone slab -lost today- by craftsmen from Pyrsogianni and costed 15 Ottoman pounds offered by Dimitrios Papas Ioannou.

The bridge was in danger of being destroyed by the rushing torrent that over time eroded the ground next to the bridge and widened its gap. Fortunately, in 2007, the bridge was maintained and a special wood structure built on a stone foundation.

Churches

St Athanasios

On the square between the two neighborhoods with panoramic view. It is said to be built in the place of an older one, probably in 1755, where, as it was said, it had also been a school. The church was rebuilt, in 1866. Then the temple was made. And of course it has wonderful frescoes with fine colors and covers all the periods of the famous art of Chioniades. Indeed, wherever you stand, you think the eyes of the saints are facing you, something rare.

St Nikolaos

Saint Nicholas is today a small chapel near the cemetery of the village in the place of an old temple built 400 years ago years and which according to tradition was the old central church of the village. This temple was frescoed, but from the many repairs, few fragments were saved in the Sacred Intention. A small figure of a saint, a remnant of old frescoes, is estimated to date back to the early 17th century. The icons of the temple and other chapels have been removed from their place and kept in a safer place.

Old chapels

Dedicated to Virgin ( Panagia), Saint Paraskevi, Prophet Elias and the Holy Trinity.

The old and the new school

In the village square there are two stone buildings, which formed the old and the new school of Chionades. The building of the old school was built in 1905. It is a small oblong building with a characteristic porch at the entrance, which consists of two stone-built pillars supporting a small shed with a triangular pediment. The building, when the new school was built, housed the community offices and the village café.

Activities

From Chionades, hikers and mountaineers can make various nice trips both on Grammos and further afield to Aetomilitsa and the Arenes Mountains (2197m). It goes without saying that you need a good physical condition, as well as an experienced guide because the paths are not marked and do not exist on maps.

Grammos is known mainly for his warfare in World War II and Civil War and for many years his villages have been isolated.The massif of Grammos, which is part of the Natura 2000 network (Ecological Network for the Protection of Regions of the European Union), presents an impressive ensemble due to the diversity of its relief.

With the homonymous pyramidal peak dominating majestically at 2,520 m and a number of peaks with an altitude well above the 2000 m. ιt composes an impressive ridge with a length of over 15 kilometers and a north-south direction. The geological formations, the many and high peaks forming valleys (Grammosta, Aetomilitsa, Plikati), the beautiful alpine lakes (Grammosta, Moutsalia) and the rich flora and fauna make it one of the most beautiful and interesting natural landscapes.

Events

On July 20 a feast in the chapel of Prophet Elias takes place.

<p>The post Chioniades – The beautiful village of folk painters first appeared on Epirus Explorer.</p>

Drosopigi

The stone bridge of Drosopigi

The church of Agia Paraskevi

Sarantaporos

Sarantaporos

The stone built school

The view from the village

About the village

Drosopigi is one of the villages that belong to Mastorochoria and one of the best preserved. The stone houses with the paved roofs or tiled roofs, the streets, the square which is of the most beautiful squares of Mastorochoria, the church of Agia Paraskevi (1930) and the stone school (1927) are examples of the local architecture.

The residents were builders but also excelled in viticulture and the art of barrel. In fact, craftsmen from Kantsa worked throughout the Greek territory and abroad (Iran, Sudan, USA).

What to see

In the center of the square there is a huge tree with 6m perimeter which during the civil war suffered a shrapnel but survived and eventually stands up till today.

Next, at a short distance from the square stands the beautiful and imposing church of Agia Paraskevi which was built by craftsmen from Kantsa in 1930.

You can also admire the stone bridge known as “Kantsiotiko bridge“, from the older name of the village Kantsa. It is the only surviving stone bridge in the main Sarantaporos and a “trademark“.

What’s more, it is one of the few bridges of Epirus, which was founded in the mid 18th century, more specifically in 1717.

Furthermore, it is built up in typical rock on both sides of which start two large arches towards the opposite riverbank. Above the cliff there is an even smaller arch to cross the waters of the river during periods of high level. Today we see a cluster of two bridges next to one another, with two different materials. The beautiful old stone bridge is just a breath away from the newest iron one.

The name of the master builder of the construction of the bridge is unknown, but there are several elements showing that this is a creation of the hands of Kantsa people. Also, the name of the sponsor who addressed the construction costs is unknown as well. However, it seems to have a strong historical basis myth that the money was allocated by the wife of a Bey (officer of the Ottoman Empire) in the region.

It is the only surviving stone bridge in the main Sarantaporo.

<p>The post Drosopigi – You’ll fall in love with this fantastic stone village first appeared on Epirus Explorer.</p>