Gate Bethlehem 
Bethlehem Gate is located on the western side of the Venetian Walls of Heraklion, opposite the former Pananio Hospital. The bastion was named after a small church dedicated to the Virgin Mary of Bethlehem, which once stood in the fields outside the fortifications.
Bethlehem Bastion was served by two vaulted military gates, one on its northern side and another on its southern side. They allowed soldiers, ammunition and artillery to move safely between the interior of the fortifications and the bastion’s lower squares. Unlike the principal city gates of Candia, they were not intended for the daily movement of residents and merchandise.
The northern Bethlehem Gate led to the northern lower square of the bastion. Artillery positioned there controlled the moat and provided supporting crossfire for the neighbouring Pantokrator Bastion. The gate’s city-facing façade is especially elaborate and resembles the monumental entrance of a principal urban gate rather than a secondary military passage.
Today, the spaces around Bethlehem Bastion form part of Heraklion’s cultural life. The northern lower square hosts exhibitions and artistic events, while the wider complex contains an open-air theatre and the municipal Bethlehem summer cinema.
Since 2009, the vaulted passage of the gate has housed the permanent exhibition “El Greco – Return to the Homeland”, dedicated to the great Cretan painter Dominikos Theotokopoulos. The collection includes costumes, props and recreated paintings used in director Yannis Smaragdis’s film El Greco. As access to the exhibition may depend on the operating programme of the cultural venues, visitors are advised to check opening arrangements in advance.
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Additional Info
- Location: Heraklion Prefecture
- Peak Period: Venetian Era (1204 AD - 1669 AD)
