| The
Church of Panagia Ekatontapiliani |
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The most famous and oldest church of Paros is the Church
of Panagia Ekatontapiliani (Our Lady of the Hundreds Gates)
or Katapoliani, which is also considered as one of the
most important Byzantine Monuments of Greece.
Located in the capital of Paros,
Parikia, the church is believed to be miraculous and every
year, thousands of Pilgrims visit it for its celebration,
on the 15th of August.
This church is supposed to have been built according to
the orders of Saint Helene, mother of Constantine the
Great (the first Christian Emperor) when she stopped in
Paros, during her travel to the Holy Land of Palestine
in order to find the Holy Cross.
Panagia Ekantontapiliani was built
on the site of an older cross shaped wooden basilica which
was destroyed, nobody knows exactly why.
The new church built there had beautiful vaults and domes
but was hit by many catastrophes all over the centuries,
creating great damages.
The worst of those was in 1733, when an earthquake caused
the destruction of the northern and western vaults. The
consolidation and reparation of the church has changed
its initial architectural shape, distorting its original
style, creating an interesting and unique result.
In its interior, the church has a beautiful cross-shaped
baptistery, wonderful sculptural decorations, fine post-Byzantine
icons, astonishing marble-carved iconostasis and more.
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Panagia
Septemvriani (Virgin Mary of September) in which
one can admire a wonderful bust of the Virgin Mary, dating
from 1592
Panagia of Stavros, Agia Ekaterini
(Saint Catherine), Agios Onoufrios, Agios
Markos (Saint Marc), Agios Nikolaos
(Saint Nicholas) and more.
A few kilometres
away from the village of Parikia is the Moni Christou
tou Dassous (Convent of the Christ of the Woods), built
on the top of the hill and offering a splendid view of
the island of Antiparos.
This Convent was built during the 18th century and woman
only are allowed to penetrate the sanctuary.
| The
Monastery of Longovarda |
|
This monastery is 6 kilometres away from the village of
Parikia and was founded in 1638, as a dedication to Zoodochos
Pigi (Source of life).
The Monastery of Longovarda is the largest monastery of
the island and is famous for its attractive and interesting
architecture.
It also houses a library in which rare and valuable manuscripts
are safely guarded and a book making workshop.
The icons and frescoes located inside the church are worth-seeing.
The Monastery of Longovarda is open only for men.
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the 19th century and stands majestically on the highest hill of the village.
:: The church of Agios Athanasios, built during the 17th century
:: The church of Agios Ioannis Theologos
:: The church of Agios Georgios
:: The church of Agios Antonios
:: The church of Agios Nikolaos which
houses a Byzantine Museum exposing various fine icons
dating from the 13th century and more.
The little church of Agios Ioannis Detis (Saint John)
was built during the 17th century, in the rocks of the
opposite side of the village of Naoussa, in an area called
Monastiri, in the huge bay of Naoussa.
This area offers a superb beach attracting many visitors
for its great beauty.
| The
Church of Agia Triada |
|
In the beautiful and picturesque mountainous village of
Lefkes stands the main church of Agia Triada (Holy Trinity),
built in 1830.
This church is very beautiful and impressive and has been
constructed with the fine semi-transparent marble of Paros,
the so-called Parian marble.
The island of Paros is full of more churches, monasteries
and chapels, most of them being built in the inhabited
areas of Alyki, Drios, Prodromos and more and are ready
to be explored and visited. |
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