The monastery at Diaporit

After almost 200 years of abandonment, the sprawling Roman villa at Diaporit on Lake Butrint was reoccupied in the late 5th century as a pilgrimage centre. The old buildings were gutted for materials and a large three-aisled Christian church was constructed on a terrace set well back from the shore.

The basilica church was focused around three marble-lined tombs in the apse that probably contained the bones of people said to be saints or martyrs. The possible identity of these saints is unknown. Excavation of the apse tombs revealed only a single solitary leg bone, and it is likely that the rest of the contents of these tombs were removed in the Middle Ages.

The church and the cult may have been maintained by a small monastic community, and around the basilica a series of structures were built. This hypothesis may be supported by the distinct preferential entryways to the basilica itself, which would have ensured a separation between members of the monastic community and lay visitors to the site.

Large kilns provided materials for the roofing of the church, while a variety of storerooms, re-using the rooms of the former Roman villa, held the provisions of the community. The main dwelling was a two-storey house with an associated tower, bathhouse and chapel. A glass pane, simply made of poured rather than blown glass, found in the small chapel may have functioned as a shelf for ritual implements and objects.

Early Christian activity spread across all areas of the site. Around the Roman bathhouse and in the area close to the lake, 5th- and 6th-century remains were found. The bath-house was also partially used as a cemetery.

The occupation of this Christian centre probably lasted no more than 60-70 years. The church complex and pilgrimage centre at Diaporit was abandoned by AD 550 as Butrint experienced a short economic downturn and – unlike the basilica on the Vrina Plain – not reoccupied or transformed for other uses.

 

• The Churches of Butrint
• The Great Basilica
• QTVR of the great Basilica
• Other Churches at Butrint
• The monastery at Diaporit
• QTVR of the monastery at Diaporit
• Reconstruction of the monastery at Diaporit
• The basilica on the Vrina Plain
• Excavating the Vrina Plain basilica (QTVR)
• The mosaic pavement of the Vrina Basilica
• The mosaic pavement in detail