Dormition (Greece, Syros)

Beneath the dome of the Church of the Dormition of the Virgin in Ermoupoli , on the island of Syros , light diffuses in golden circles around Christ Pantocrator , a central figure in Byzantine art. The Greek inscription surrounding the vault refers to the promise made to Peter—"You are Peter, and upon this rock I will build my Church"—a reminder of the link between faith and the living rock that is the human community.

This church, built in 1828 , houses an unexpected treasure: an icon by El Greco entitled The Assumption of the Virgin , rediscovered in 1983 after four centuries of oblivion. The term Dormition , derived from the Latin dormitio , means "sleep" and, in Orthodox theology, refers to the moment when the Virgin Mary falls asleep before her elevation to heaven . The scene painted on the dome illustrates this symbolic passage between earth and light, between matter and eternity.

The Church of the Dormition, a discreet jewel of Cycladic heritage, remains a place of worship and artistic transmission , where Greek neoclassical architecture meets post-Byzantine painting . The light, filtered by the circular openings, makes the ancient pigments vibrate like a breath of the sacred.