St. Augustine, FL: The Second Annual Drawing Contest of St. Photios Greek Orthodox National Shrine was held in conjunction with the annual commemoration of the Fall of Constantinople.
Besieged by the Ottomans, Constantinople and a few remaining lands of the Roman (Byzantine) Empire was led by the Emperor Constantine XI, successor to the founder of the capital over a thousand years earlier, Emperor and Saint Constantine the Great. With the breach of the city walls that had protected the city for over a millennium, the Emperor and defenders consisting of Greeks, Genoans, and others were finally vanquished.
Twenty one contestants offered their rendition of Constantine XI Palaiologos, the last Byzantine Emperor. The St. Photios Greek Orthodox National Shrine is proud to display the entrants’ submissions in the special exhibit area of the Shrine Museum.
An award of $250.00 for the 2022 Annual Children’s Drawing Contest was presented to Georgia Giannakakos (12 years old) of Des Plaines, IL. The contest, made possible through the generosity of the Toundas family of Jacksonville, FL, was open to young persons ages 9-12 of the United States and Canada.
