Shopping for the Sacred

Do you have to actually be an Archbishop to buy a crown? Technically, no. But you should probably have a pretty good story. 

Last summer, in the white bright August heat we wandered into Agiou Philothei, a quite literally exclusive shopping street just behind Athens' central Cathedral. Store after store had goods I never imagined being for sale- crowns, enormous crucifix pendants, those very chandeliers we see suspended so perilously from thick cables in churches. There was a hushed decorum, a stillness even the cicadas wouldn't break. It felt a little like we weren't really supposed to be there; that made it more exciting.

This winter we returned, and felt bold enough to go into a shop. We were warmly received. I asked the tailor, who was hand-stitching priests' hats, if anyone can shop here. And we can!

(He set out these enormous shears just for us 
when he saw how we admired this iron)

The sartorial meets the sacred (starting at just twenty Euros a meter), and apparently anyone can buy anything. Although certain ornaments denote rank, the intricacy of textile patterns does not. The array of patterns and colors is simply for catering to personal taste, likewise the various fringes and trims. The bolts of fabric are dazzling!

A shop at the beginning of the street sells church chandeliers (these pictured below being petite)-

And several specialize in smaller devotional objects. Our favorite was a store of the Russian Orthodox Church, including these Faberge-esqsue sacred eggs:

And icons such as we had never seen- the saftige corporeality of Rome with the severe two-dimensionality of the East.

Our favorite shop, with a fine selection of affordable and- if it is not improper to say so- sumptuous icons is just at the beginning of the street as you leave the church behind you, on the right:

Sofrino, Ag. Philothei 2A.

The fabric stores are up a bit, and the tailor, pictured above, is just past the covered galleria on the left hand side.

Right between the dear madness that is Plaka and the loud commercial chaos of Ermou, Agiou Philothei is valley of calm and reserve, and more riches of silk and gold than you can imagine.

For a little more chaos, and a jumble of beautiful things, here is one of my favorite places to buy shiny things in Athens.

A perfect Athenian weekend of Picasso and Pastis.