The monk had never met a woman in his life.

Greek monk Mihailo Tolotos lived his entire 82 years in the mountains of Athos, where women were forbidden.

In 1856, just four hours after giving birth to Tolotos, his mother died. With no one else in the family to take care of him, Tolotos was left on the steps of a monastery on Mount Athos. He was raised by Eastern Orthodox monks and the monastery gave him the name Mihailo Tolotos. Throughout his life, Tolotos lived according to the strict rules that were in place in the area.

In 1060, a law was promulgated banning all women, including female animals, from Mount Athos, which is essentially a peninsula of more than 330 square kilometers. This law remains in effect to this day, making it the largest area in the world where women are banned.

A monk stands on a ferry looking towards the Dionysiou Monastery, one of 20 monasteries in the Athos mountains, northern Greece. Photo: Guardian — A monk stands on a ferry looking towards the Dionysiou Monastery, one of 20 monasteries in the Athos mountains, northern Greece. Photo: *Guardian*

Dr Graham Speake, author of a book on the history of Mount Athos, said the rule was introduced to ensure monks maintained their sacred vow of celibacy for life. Women were banned from monasteries in many places for similar reasons, but what made Mount Athos unique was that the entire area was “considered one giant monastery”.

No female animals also meant no eggs or milk could be produced, so cheese and other animal products had to be brought in from the “outside” world. Monks were also forbidden from shaving and had to grow long beards to ensure no women could sneak in.

Orthodox monks in Greece in 1907. Photo: Wikimedia Commons — Orthodox monks in Greece in 1907. Photo: *Wikimedia Commons*

While many other monks had seen women before joining the monastery, Tolotos' life from childhood to adulthood was tied to the mountains of Athos.

The monks of Mount Athos could also leave their monasteries to go out into the wide world and meet someone of the opposite sex, but Tolotos never set foot outside his birthplace.

He died in 1938 at the age of 82 and was buried with special ceremony by the monks of Mount Athos. They believed he was the only man in the world who had never met a woman.

Tolotos' death was recorded in a newspaper article at the time. "Monk Dies in Greece Without Ever Seeing a Woman" was the headline of an article about Tolotos published in the Edinburgh Daily Courier on October 29, 1938.

Accordingly, apart from women, he had never seen many other things with his own eyes. He had never seen a car, an airplane, or even a movie.

An article in the Edinburgh Daily Courier in 1938 about the death of priest Mihailo Tolotos. Photo: Greek Reporter. — An article in the Edinburgh Daily Courier in 1938 about the death of monk Mihailo Tolotos. Photo: *Greek Reporter* .

Although the centuries-old ban on women remains in place, women have indeed set foot on Mount Athos many times throughout history. During the Greek Civil War (1946-1949), the monks of Mount Athos allowed farmers to hide their livestock there. A group of women and girls from the other side entered Athos to seize the livestock.

Not long after, a Greek woman named Maria Poimenidou dressed as a man and spent three days on Athos. Her transgressions caused such an uproar among the local community that the Greek government issued a decree that it was illegal for women to enter Athos and that anyone attempting to do so could be jailed for up to 12 months.

Today, Mount Athos is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It is home to 20 monasteries with around 2,000 Eastern Orthodox monks. Each day, 100 Orthodox men and 15 non-Orthodox men are allowed to visit the peninsula.

Vu Hoang (According to Vintage News, Greek Reporter )

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