Theotokos Ktitorissa or Vimatarissa - Holy Monastery Vatopedi

When, in 1822, the Holy Mountain was occupied by a Turkish garrison, a soldier dared to shoot at the icon of the Theotokos on the outside of the Monastery, above the entrance. The bullet damaged the right hand of the Theotokos, and the sacrilegious culprit, who was a nephew of the commander of the squad, went mad and hanged himself from an olive tree in the garden opposite the entrance to the Monastery.

According to the tradition, in the 4th century AD, the Byzantine emperor Theodosius the Great (379–395 AD) laid the foundations for the reconstruction of the monastery, as a gesture of gratitude for the salvation of his son, Arkadius. Arcadius was sailing towards Rome, when suddenly the ship was wrecked and he himself was miraculously saved by the intervention of the Virgin Mary. Arkadius was found on the shores of the Athonian Peninsula, sleeping next to a reed.

As we know from the writings in the Old Testament, wine acquired distinctive symbolism. After the flood, Noah planted and managed to create his own vineyard. In Exodus, God gave a promise to bless three significant goods for human life: bread, water and wine. The lands and climate in the regions of Hebron and Palestine were conducive for the cultivation of vineyards. Viticulture flourished in a short time and gained great demand, as people cultivated their vines to produce the blessed wine. David hymns wine through his psalms, saying: "And wine that makes glad the heart of man..." (Psalm 104:15) and "You have put gladness in my heart, More than in the season that their grain and wine increased" (Psalm 4:7).