Places
The church of St. George (Agios Georgios) (Vathi)
A one-hall church covered with arches, characterised by blind side coving. According to the inscription inside, its murals date to 1284 and are typical examples illustrating folk style art of the time.
The church of St. Athanassius (Agios Athanassios) (Kefali)
A one-hall church covered with arches; the inscription with the year 1393 found in its interior informs us that the ktetor (donor) was Anna Moskanna.
The church of the Saviour’s Transfiguration (Metamorphosis tou Sotiros) (Kefali)
This is a 14th century church, the murals of which date back to 1320, as indicated by an inscription. The particularity of the church is that, besides murals, it also bears numerous coats of arms, names and dates on all its walls.
The church of St. John the Divine (Agios Ioannis Theologos) (Elos)
At the centre of the village of Elos there is the one-hall church covered with arches, dedicated to St. John the Divine (Theologos), with important mural decoration. The paintings are attributed to Ioannis Pagomenos, a well-known painter from western Crete.
The Cave of God’s Wisdom (Spileo tis Theou Sophias) (Koutsomatado – Topolia)
The small church of St. Sophia is situated in the cave of the same name, on the west bank of Topolia Gorge, and comprises two halls on two levels.
The church of St. Photius (Agios Photios) & St. Anicetus (Agios Anikitos) (Falassarna)
Near the church of St. Ioannis Xenos, there is a cave church dedicated to St. Photius and Anikitos. This cave church, offering a wonderful vista of the area, has been altered many times and its foundation is attributed to Ioannis Xenos himself.
The church of Ioannis Xenos (Falassarna)
This is a two-aisled church dedicated to Osios Ioannis and St. Eustathios, near ancient Falassarna. It was the hermitage of Osios Ioannis Xenos during the 11th century and part of it is within a cave. The mural decoration dates to the period between the 11th and the 14th century and tells the life story of […]
The church of Saint Barbara (Agia Varvara) (Boulgaro)
In the village of Boulgaro there is the ruined church of Saint Barbara, which probably used to be the Catholicon church of a monastery. It is a cruciform, ‘cross-in-a-square’ church with a cupola and a narthex that was added at a later age, which underwent various architectural changes during the period of Venetian. The church […]
The Church of Archangel Michael (Michail Archangelos) (Episcope)
This early Christian church dating from the second half of the 6th century, situated outside Kato Episcope, near Kissamos, is one of the most important monuments of Crete from the early Christian period. The church is of great value, from both an architectural and an icon painting perspective. Architecturally, it is a periaptic (pericentric) rectangular […]
The Cave of St. John the Hermit (Spileo Agiou Ioanni tou Erimiti) (Marathokefala)
The Cave of St. John the Hermit is situated near Marathokefala, a little higher than the bed of Avlaki gorge. It is richly decorated with numerous stalactites and stalagmites. This is where St. John the Hermit, the founder of the Catholicon Monastery lived for three years. He led an ascetic life in the nude for […]
