Mountain, northern Greece.
Reaching a height of 6,670 ft (2,033 m), it occupies Aktí, a promontory of the Chalcidice Peninsula. It is the site of a semiautonomous republic of 20 monasteries and dependencies (skítes). Organized monastic life began there in 963, when St. Athanasius the Athonite founded the first monastery. By 1400 there were 40 monasteries. Long regarded as the holy mountain of the Greek Orthodox Church , it was declared a theocratic republic in 1927. Its churches and libraries house a rich collection of Byzantine art and ancient and medieval manuscripts.