Arkadi Monastery

Arkadi occupies a plateau at about 500 metres in the hills of Rethymno, and its church facade, dated 1587, is one of the finest pieces of Renaissance architecture on Crete: a two-aisled church front with paired Corinthian columns, an arched entrance and a bell tower rising above, in warm ochre stone against a bare landscape. The complex around it is a walled quadrangle with cells, a refectory, a powder magazine and cypresses in the courtyard, and a museum room holds vestments, icons and manuscripts. The monastery holds an unusually large place in Cretan identity, and it is designated a European Monument of Freedom; the site is treated by visitors and locals as a memorial as much as a working religious house.

History

The founding date is unknown; tradition credits it to the Byzantine emperor Heraclius or to Arcadius in the 5th century, from whom it would take its name, and an inscription of the 14th century published in 1951 shows a monastery of Saint Constantine here at that time. In the Cretan revolt of 1866, 943 Greeks, mostly women and children, took refuge in the monastery, and after three days of fighting, on the abbot's orders, they blew up the barrels of gunpowder rather than surrender, making it a national symbol (Wikipedia, Arkadi Monastery).

The main sights

• The 1587 facade - the Renaissance church front, Crete's best-known.
• The walled quadrangle - cells, refectory and courtyard cypresses.
• The museum room - icons, vestments and monastic manuscripts.
• The plateau setting - bare hills and olive terraces around the walls.

When to go

Spring and autumn for comfortable visiting; the plateau is hot and bright in summer, and coach groups arrive mid-morning from Rethymno. Modest dress is required.

Good to know

The complex is compact and takes an hour to ninety minutes. Signage is modest and the museum small. Cretan visitors treat the place with real solemnity, which visitors should respect.

Nearby

Margarites and its potteries lie north; Eleutherna's excavations and museum are close by.

Key facts