Places
Koimisi tis Theotokou (Dormition of Mother Mary) Church (Thronos)
This is a one-aisle, tile-roofed church of the 14th century, built on the ruins of an older Metropolitan church. The coats of arms of the Kallergis’ family are also found in this church, which means that it probably belonged to them. The murals dating from the 13th and 14th centuries include an impressive enthroned Madonna […]
The Basilica of Syvritos (Thronos)
The ruins of this early Christian basilica were discovered in 1983. It is a three-aisled church with a wooden roof and narthex, divided in three parts. The south aisle is from the 6th century and the east part from the 14th century. Mosaic floors are preserved in the church interior.
Church of the Agia Triada (Holy Trinity) & Agios Ioannis Theologos (St. John the Divine) (Pantanassa)
A two-aisled church; according to its inscription, it was built in 1645 by Priest Manolis Vlastos. There are special Gothic-style doors and a domed tomb dating from 1594.
Theotokou (Mother Mary) Church (Patsos)
The church dedicated to the Nativity of Mother Mary is an ordinary four-pillar in the square church with a cupola. Although it is in ruins, its walls are still standing. It was built in two phases. The first one dates back to the 11th or 12th century and its extensive reconstruction to the 14th century. […]
Agios Antonios (St. Anthony) (Patsos)
The church is built within a rock, in the lush green of the gorge of St. Anthony. It is accessible through a well-kept path and can be reached after a brief walk. This exceptional church contains numerous portable icons and a wealth of votive offerings of various types.
Panagias Thymianis (Mother Mary of the thyme) Monastery (Komitades)
According to tradition the name of the monastery comes from an icon of Mother Mary found under a thyme bush and has been a sacred site for the residents of Sfakia. The catholicon (main church) of the monastery is a two-aisled church dedicated to the Nativity of Mother Mary (Gennisis tis Theotokou) and the Holy […]
Agiou Pnevmatos (Holy Spirit) Monastery (Kissos)
This monastery was established in the late Byzantine period and only the small two-aisled church with a narthex has been preserved. Several documents from the 1635-1650 period refer to the monastery, which was probably at its prime then. During the 1821 Liberation Revolution, the Ottomans destroyed the monastery, slaughtered the monks and set fire to […]
Panagias (Mother Mary) Monastery (Fourfouras)
At the Leivada location, southeast of Fourfouras, there are ruins of the Monastery of Mother Mary (Moni Panagias), which is also known as Panagia sti Leivada (Mother Mary on the Meadow). The only thing preserved from the monastery is a small, arch-roofed, one-aisle church, within which some murals dating back to 1400 have been preserved. […]
Asomaton (Gathering of the Angels) Monastery
The Monastery of Asomatoi is dedicated to the Gathering of the Angels. It was built in the 2nd Byzantine period in the style of a fortress. At the end of the 18th century it was the seat of the Bishop of Lambi. Initially the catholicon (main church) was a one-aisled, arch-roofed church; however, in the […]
Preveli Monastery
The famous monastery of Prevelis, overlooking the Libyan Sea, is composed off two building complexes, the ‘Back’ (Piso) and the ‘Low’ (Kato) Monastery, with a distance of 2 kilometres between them. There are numerous legends associated with the establishment of the monastery, dating back to the Venetian rule period, like most Cretan monasteries. At that […]
