⭐ Travel Guide for Island Crete ⛵, Greece❗ - Panagia Church at Panagia (Kenourgiou)

Panagia Church at Panagia (Kenourgiou)

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The almost deserted village of Panagia, in the province of Kainourgiou, was named after its old three-aisled church of Panagia. It is believed that during the 15th century the church formed the centre of a religious complex, around which the small settlement gradually developed.

The church is built over a small stream, in a beautiful green setting. Beside it is a small orchard with orange trees, while the restored former village school stands in the churchyard and forms an integral part of the historic ensemble.

The church consists of three aisles. The northern, left aisle is dedicated to Archangel Michael and celebrates on 8 November. The central aisle is dedicated to the Dormition of the Mother of God and celebrates on 15 August, while the southern, right aisle is dedicated to the Exaltation of the Holy Cross and celebrates on 14 September.

An old fresco depicting Christ, probably in the iconographic type of Christ Pantocrator, survives in the sanctuary apse of the central aisle. It is one of the few remaining elements of the church’s earlier painted decoration.

Of particular interest are the Early Christian marble architectural members that have been reused in the church. Marble slabs, probably originating from an Early Christian church in the wider area of ancient Gortyna, have been incorporated into the sanctuary screen of the central aisle. Additional architectural fragments can be seen in the southern aisle, including part of a marble column. Their precise provenance, however, has not yet been archaeologically confirmed.