Religious Monuments of Asterousia Mountains

The greatest hermitage in Crete was the naturally isolated, and impassable range of Asterousia in current southern Heraklion prefecture, where Saint Paul is said to have stayed for two years. Many caves from Saint Nikitas to Cape Lithino still host hermits. Relations between them were so limited that in Agiofarago and Martsalo they gathered only once a year, in cave Goumenospilios and counted how many of them survived each year.

Saint Paul Monastery at Paranimfi

1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 Rating 4.33 (3 Votes)

The former monastery of St. Paul (13-14th century) is located near the village Paranimfi near a spring. All around, we see traces of an ancient temple, which was looted. The church is a basilica with single nave and there are traces of frescoes.

Filagris Monastery at Lousoudi

1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 Rating 4.25 (4 Votes)

The ruined monastery of the Three Hierarchs is located at one of the most inhospitable areas of Crete, at position Lousoudi of the wild Asterousia Mountains. It was founded in the 14th century near the peak of Kofinas, at an altitude of 880m.

Saint Demetrius monastery at Achendrias

1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 Rating 4.00 (2 Votes)

From the Byzantine monastery still stands the church of Agios Dimitrios (Saint Demetrius) with very old frescoes. In the churchyard there are the remains of the monk cells.

Saint Nikolaos monastery by Sternes

1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 Rating 3.67 (3 Votes)

Between the village Sternes and the Monastery Koudoumas, on the wild and arid range of Asterousia, we meet the abandoned village and the church of St. Nicholas (celebrating on December 6th). The church was a dependency of the monastery Koudoumas.

North Agios Nikitas

1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 Rating 5.00 (2 Votes)

At Asterousia Mountains, because of the very low rainfalls, the existence of a spring of water played a key role during the selection of places to develop settlements. Such a small settlement, in which the existence of springs favored its development was the settlement Goulis Metohi, known to the shepherds mainly a North Agios Nikitas.

Panagia Vithanos church at Krotos

1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 Rating 5.00 (3 Votes)

The cave church of Panagia at Vithanos is located in a panoramic position of the Loutra Gorge, near the village of Krotos. It is dedicated to Zoodochos Pigi (Life Giving Spring) and one can still see the date 20-5-1765 above the entrance.

Panagia Gorgoipikoos church at Pigaidakia

1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 Rating 5.00 (1 Vote)

The church of Panagia Gorgoepikoos is located at the territory of the village Pigaidakia, near the beginning of the stream that ends on Karavovrissi beach in Kali Limenes. Today only the temple is preserved from the complex that till the beginning of the 20th century was a small monastery.

Early Christian basilica of Lendas

1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 Rating 5.00 (2 Votes)

Lendas is a remote seaside settlement located in the imposing Asterousia Mountains, 74km south of Heraklion. The settlement is built on the site of the ancient city of Levena, which flourished in the Greco-Roman years, as the seaport of Gortyn, which was then the most important city of Crete.

Asterousia

Religious Monuments of Asterousia Mountains

Also read: