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Κατηγορία: Prefecture of Chalkidiki

  • Mother of Lord Koryfini Holy Orthodox Church

    Mother of Lord Koryfini Holy Orthodox Church

    The icon of madonna, according to tradition, was washed ashore after a great earthquake and climbed to the highest peak of the island. The icon was discovered on top of the hill by the inhabitants, who later built a monastery there and named it “Panagia Korifini” (“Mother of Lord Koryfini” in english).

    They first tried to move the icon to the church located in the center of the village, but they always lose it and then find it again on top of the mountain. For that reason, they decided to build the monastery there and name it as such. During the first persecution in 1918, the inhabitants carried the icon with them to the depths of Asia Minor and placed it inside a church. However, every day they found it on the top of a mountain located in the surrounding area. When they returned to the island, they placed the icon in the designated monastery. The vigil light in the church never went out and was the only lighthouse in the entire area. Not only the Christians, but also the Turks believed in the icons’ miraculous grace, because many were saved from shipwrecks. The offerings and donations, by Christians and non-believers, piled up daily in the monastery.

    The first small church of madonna was built with money from the people of Kalolimnos on the hill that took its name.

  • Ancient city of Toroni

    Ancient city of Toroni

    Immigrants from Euboea settled in Toroni during the 8th BC. century. The city became a member of the Athenian League, until the Spartans captured it. King Philip II of Macedonia occupied the city in 348 BC, while in 168 BC the region fell into the hands of the Romans.
    Ancient Toroni was one of the largest and richest cities of Halkidiki.

    During the years of Roman occupation and the Byzantine era, the city walls were strengthened to protect it from the sea and the land. They were built with the construction material left over from the ancient acropolis.

    Excavations in the area began in 1975 by the Australian Archaeological Institute in Athens. The findings showed that the area had been continuously inhabited since the Early Bronze Age. Some very important vessels were found in the city cemetery. Among them is a magnificent silver jug, dating from the 5th century BC, with engraved jellyfish on the handles, which is now on display in the Archaeological Museum of Thessaloniki.

    The visitor can see part of the city walls and ruins from the citadel. The docks of the port, made of huge granite blocks, were discovered at the bottom of the sea. Together with the remains of stone walls, which continue on the coast and were probably the warehouses of the city.