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<p>[QUOTE=&quot;DonnaML, post: 4293924, member: 110350&quot;]I find it interesting that by charter, female animals are also barred from Mount Athos. An exception is made for cats, it seems, because female cats ensure a continued population of mousers.&nbsp; </p><p><br /></p><p>It occurred to me upon reading this that in all probability women have been there in disguise, just as Christian Englishmen used to visit Mecca in disguise (or attempt to do so) in the 19th century.&nbsp; This article confirms at least one such visit (in 1953), as well as one sanctioned visit by a woman in the past -- a 14th century empress of Serbia whose feet never touched the soil during her visit, because she either walked on carpet or was carried.&nbsp; And then there&#039;s the recent discovery of what appear to be the remains of a woman buried there. See <a href="https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/possible-female-remains-discovered-greeces-all-male-monastic-peninsula-180973811/" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/possible-female-remains-discovered-greeces-all-male-monastic-peninsula-180973811/" rel="nofollow">https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/possible-female-remains-discovered-greeces-all-male-monastic-peninsula-180973811/</a>[/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

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