So many pirate raids, so many natural disasters that have occurred in the millennia-old history of the holy city could not erase it from the map, while the secular power of the Ottoman conquerors respected principles and privileges during the five hundred years of Islamic occupation, so that Mount Athos reached our days untouched and pure... like a miracle.

As a continuation of the early Christian monasticism of the ascetics of the Egyptian desert and Palestine, as an elite part of the multinational Byzantine Empire, with its strict adherence to the eternal values of love, truth, and goodness, Mount Athos with its twenty monasteries is one of the few spiritual oases on the planet, an inexhaustible source of inspiration for people who are concerned about the deadlocks of the modern world.

Despite the fact that in recent years there has been a growing interest, on a global scale, in Mount Athos, the literature about the society of the monks remains limited. This is mainly due to the objective difficulties of approaching the place, with restrictions on the number of visitors, the prohibition of entry to the female population (forbidden), the mandatory issuance of a residence permit (Athonite visa), the rudimentary transportation, and the problematic road network.

This album, a product of collaboration between photographers and scientists with a long-standing relationship with Mount Athos, we believe will give the opportunity to the broader audience and especially to the female audience to feel something of the fragrance not only of the beauty but also of the spirit of this unique place, also contributing to the relevant literature.

(from the publisher's preface)