Churches and Monasteries of Skopelos

Although Skopelos island is a small Aegean island, it hosts 360 places of worship such as churches, convents, monasteries and private chapels. Let's say that most of these stupendous works of art are closed and are only opened to the public on the occasion of the saint to whom they are dedicated, but they are a curious alternative to a day at the beach. Follow the path of the Monasteries as it is commonly called, it will be a leap into the past to understand the present.

The devotion of the inhabitants of Skopelos is immense enough to build even privately many of the churches that are in the area. Legend has it that their origins arise from the discovery of precious icons which during the catastrophe of Asia Minor in 1921 arrived for some strange reason by sea at the hands of the Greek-Turkish population who, to save them from destruction by the Turks, threw them in the waters and for an inexplicable miracle, have deposited on the coasts of Skopelos. The inhabitants who have always been faithful to their religion have thus decided to build sanctuaries in their respect.

Describing them all is a challenge, we give you an idea of the ones to visit during your holiday in Skopelos.

Zoodochos Pighi Monastery

It is found in the citadel of Skopelos Town. It dates back to the 17th century and is also called Panaghia Elefterotria (Virgin Liberator). A paved roof with colored ceramics and a spectacular fountain almost hidden behind a huge, centuries-old plane tree. It is dedicated to San Luca, patron saint of doctors and surgeons.

Episcopi Monastery

The Monastery of Episcopi Vescovato is located in the town of Skopelos and is one of the few in Venetian style existing in Skiathos. It is surrounded by the stone walls with windows and battlements of the fort dating back to the 16th and 17th centuries. A small church built over the remains of a previous large basilica with three naves with interesting sculpted animal figures.

Evagelstra Monastery

The Evangelistra Monastery is located about four kilometers from the Chora right on a steep slope of the gorge with sweeping views over the capital. It dates back to the 18th century, was founded by the monks of Mount Athos and belongs to the Xiropotamos Agios Ornos Abbey. It was donated by the Daponte family of the island who took care of donating a providential restoration to still give today a church of extraordinary beauty. You will be able to observe the refined wooden sculptures painted from the 16th to the 18th century and inside it preserves an impressive 16th century golden tabernacle from Constantinople and numerous precious icons. The dome is covered and decorated with real gold leaf chiseled by craftsmen from Istanbul. It is dedicated to the Annunciation of the Virgin Mary and on March 25th it is celebrated with a feast that also brings together the liberation of Greece from the Ottomans.

Metamorphosis Monastery

The Metamorphosis Monastery also called the  is located not far from the capital, immersed in a thick pine forest. It dates back to the 16th century and houses a small chapel in a lush garden. It is opened to the public on August 6th when a big party is organized which is considered the most important festival on the island.

Aghios Timios Prodomos Convent

Timios Podromos Convent is dedicated to St. John the Baptist and was founded in 1612 by the hieromonk (sacred religious with ecclesiastical titles of priest as well as monk) Abbot Simeon. We find it at the foot of Mount Plouki about three hundred meters from another, Agia Varvara Monastery not far from Skopleos Town. Over the years it was occupied either only by men or only by women until 1920 when it officially became a nunnery. A four-column inscribed cruciform temple with a collection of fine icons and a two-piece iconostasis dating from the 14th and 17th centuries carved in wood, gilded and decorated with images of flowers and animals. Majestic 14th-century frescoes adorn the walls of the church. The day on which Saint John the Baptist is celebrated is June 24th. Don't miss Vespers on the eve and the feast the day after.

Aghia Varvara Covent

Aghia Varvara Convent (Santa Barbara) is just outside the capital Skopelos Town near the Prodromos Monastery and that of Metamorphosis. It was built in 1648 and is considered the oldest monastery on the island. In the past it was an observatory for spotting pirates due to its favorable position where among other things there is a beautiful view of the sea and the island of Alonissos. Completely in stone and closed in high walls that are hidden among the thick vegetation, it has a stupendous dome and inside it is gilded with flowers and decorative vine leaves as well as stupendous frescoes dating back to the 15th century. Santa Barbara is celebrated on December 4 with intense religious rites.

Agios Riginos Monastery

Aghios Riginos Monastery is dedicated to the patron saint of Skopelos. It is located less than a kilometer from the capital where the tomb of the saint lies. Agios Riginos arrived in Skopelos by order of an uncle with the aim of broadening the faith of God among the inhabitants of the island. He always expressed his thoughts and his devotion to the orthodox faith so much that during the reign of the emperor of Constantinople Julios Paravatis he was tortured and beheaded for his belief in wanting to follow his religion without ever giving up. The Christians of the island the same night buried him in the forest where today is the Monastery and his sepulcher. The church was built in 1728 but in 1960 it was rebuilt above the same place. From the Byzantine style originally it had only a nave with a dome, in its reconstruction instead the basilica is in the shape of a cross. Just behind finds of an ancient Doric temple. It is celebrated on February 24 and 25 with a heartfelt procession of the relic through the streets of Skopelos and many are the visitors who flock to the celebration from all parts of mainland Greece.

Panagia Livadiotissa Monastery

Panagia Livadiotissa Monastery is located about two kilometers from Skopelos Town in Ampeliki and was a dependency of Agia Katerini Monastery on Mount Sinai. It is a private temple with a single nave and a roof still in wood. Inside there are important icons and in particular an inlaid dated late Byzantine period representing the Assumption in its center and around it a miniature of the 24 verses of the akathist hymn (an ancient sung ritual of the Byzantine liturgy) as well as the icon of the Virgin of Zoodochos by the Cretan painter Antonio Agorastos. To date it does not host monks.