Shipping Information

We are glad to send the fruits of our monastic labor from our small monastery in Boeotia, Greece, to homes and parishes all around the world. Below is what you can expect when placing an order with us.

Our Shipping Process & Partners

Wherever possible, we ship our orders by registered Hellenic Post, the official postal service of Greece. If for some reason we are unable to ship to your location via Hellenic Post, we will ship via another reliable international provider. All orders sent with Hellenic Post include tracking for you to check the status and location of your package. Once your order has been prepared and posted, you will receive a confirmation email containing all of your tracking information.

Estimated Shipping Times:

Europe: 5–10 business days
USA & Canada: 10–20 business days
Australia & Rest of the World: 15–25 business days

Please note that these are estimates. Occasional delays may occur due to customs processing in your home country, which is completely beyond our control.

Important Shipping Details

Free Worldwide Shipping: We are pleased to offer Free Shipping on all orders, with no hidden fees at checkout. The price you see in the store is the final price you pay for delivery.

Lent & Pascha Shipping Notice: Because of our heavy schedule of daily divine services, we are unable to package or ship any orders during the first week of Great Lent, during Holy Week, and during Bright Week. Orders placed during these times will be shipped as quickly as possible once these periods conclude.

Taxes & Customs Duties: For orders shipped outside of the European Union (such as to the USA, Canada, or Australia), you do not pay European VAT. These prices are tax-free export prices. However, any local import duties, customs fees, or provincial taxes applied by your home country’s customs office are the buyer’s responsibility upon delivery.

Frequently Asked Questions

Our Monastery & Daily Life

Where is your monastery located?
Our monastery is located in the historic region of Boeotia, Greece, about a 20-minute drive from Thebes. Because of our isolated location, we do not have a formal postal address, and for many years, there was no paved road even leading to our monastery.

Do you accept visitors?
To preserve the quietude necessary for our spiritual life, our monastery is not open to visitors.

Can you show us any photos of in and around your monastery?
Yes!

sacred monastery of st john of the ladder at the base of the mountain

sacred monastery of st john of the ladder exterior 2

Our Liturgical Handiwork

Are all of your items in stock?
Small quantities of our handcrafted incense are usually kept in stock and prepared to ship within 3–5 business days. However, because we are a small brotherhood, all of our embroidered appliques, vestments, antimensia, and large bulk incense orders are made-to-order. For larger parish orders, please consult our Wholesale Policy page for details on custom production timelines.

What kind of coating do you use on your incense?
We coat our traditional incense using only high-grade, pure magnesium carbonate (ανθρακική μαγνησία) powder, which is the historical standard for Greek monastic incense. This prevents the incense tears from sticking together during storage.

Unlike cheap alternatives like talc (talcum powder), which cannot absorb oils well and is subject to health controversies, pure magnesium carbonate is a highly porous mineral. It acts like a microscopic sponge, locking our precious essential oils inside the resin tears so they do not evaporate over time. Furthermore, magnesium carbonate has an exceptionally high heat tolerance. When placed on hot charcoal, it does not burn, scorch, or turn black. It remains chemically inert, allowing the natural resins and oils to vaporize cleanly without releasing any chalky, dusty, or dark smoke.

What is the quality of your raw ingredients?
We believe that offering pure ingredients is essential for creating a worthy incense for worship and prayer. While many mass-manufacturers do not disclose their ingredients, our craft is defined by three strict standards:

First-Grade Frankincense: We use only the highest grade of genuine Ethiopian frankincense tears. Lower grades are heavily mixed with wood particles and tree bark, which do not melt on charcoal—instead, they burn and char, scorching the fragrance. Our premium tears are hand-sorted to ensure a clean, sweet, and soot-free burn.
Imported Swiss Essences: Our premium essential oils and botanical extractions are imported directly from a specialist in Switzerland. While many mass-producers use synthetic fragrances synthesized from petrochemicals in laboratories and cut them up to 80% with cheap chemical solvents (like Dipropylene Glycol, or DPG) to save money, our Swiss essences are 100% pure concentrate. Because we use no cheap chemical diluents, our incense vaporizes cleanly without releasing heavy soot.
Pure Magnesium Carbonate: As noted above, we use only pure magnesium carbonate to protect and preserve our incense, never talc, chalk, or chemical fillers.

What inspired your antimensia designs?
During a visit to a Byzantine museum, we were deeply moved by the ancient, historical antimensia designs used by the Church in centuries past. We decided to revive some of these beautiful, traditional layouts. Our current range features four remastered classics alongside one unique design of our own.

Can we request custom sizes or custom embroidery designs?
Yes, absolutely. We can craft custom sizes for our appliques and vestments. We can even produce custom digital embroidery files to use with your own embroidery machines. Please contact us to discuss your parish’s specific needs.

Do you make other vestments besides what is listed on the website?
Yes. We make custom vestments, under-vestments, and daily monastic clothing for all ranks of clergy and altar servers. In fact, all the clergy and altar servers at our home cathedral of St. Paraskevi in Attiki wear vestments and liturgical garments made entirely by our brotherhood. We are slowly adding these items to our online store, but you can inquire about custom orders at any time.

Orders & Accounts

I don’t know which incense to choose. Can you help?
If you are unsure where to start, or simply don’t want to choose, we recommend trying Monk Symeon’s Curated Selection. Monk Symeon will put together a very nice assortment of incense for you.

Can I sample some of your incense varieties first?
Yes. The simplest way to test our varieties is to order a Create Your Own Custom Sampler, which allows you to choose five separate blends to try in smaller quantities.

I need an item that isn’t listed in your store. Can you supply it?
Almost certainly. We are continuously adding our traditional handiworks to this store. If you are looking for a specific Church-related or liturgical item that you do not see here, please reach out via our contact page.

What is your return and exchange policy?
Because all of our liturgical items, antimensia, and appliques are handcrafted and made-to-order, we are unable to accept returns, refunds, or exchanges. Every order is carefully prepared and shipped in perfect condition from our monastery. Once a package is in transit, the delivery process is handled entirely by the postal carriers and your home country’s customs office. For this reason, we cannot take responsibility for transit delays, package loss, or customs inspections.

How do I access my customer account?
You can log in to view your order history and account details at any time on the My Account Page, or by using the My Account link located at the very bottom of every page on our website.