PAROS SIGHTSEEING

Paroikia is located in the western coast of Paros and as the capital of Paros is the administrative and economic centre of the island. You can take a walk in the paved alleys and visit the Venetian Castle with the old market. In the area of the Castle you will find a lot of shops with traditional products of the island. The town’s name dates from Byzantine times when the church of Ekatontapyliani had a number of locals as crofters. These crofters settled the old town around the church and their settlement gradually became known as Paroikia.

The temple of Panagia Ekatontapyliani, is one of the most important Byzantine monuments in Greece. It is built in the northeast side of Paroikia, near the harbour. The church was built in the fourth century on orders from Saint Eleni, mother of Constantine the Great, who landed on the island while travelling to the Holy Land. Tradition holds that she prayed to find the Holy Cross and vowed to build a church where she had stood and prayed if successful in her quest. By another account, the church was built by Constantine at his mother’s behest. Originally a cruciform basilica, it was destroyed (most likely by fire) and rebuilt under Justinian. The church was built by a pupil of the master craftsman who built Hagia Sophia in Constantinople. While the island was under Frankish and later Turkish rule, the church suffered extensive damage and was repeatedly pillaged, and suffered the worse damage in 1773 by a severe earthquake. The church’s restoration was begun in 1959. Today the church has been restored to its initial design, a cruciform domed basilica. On the church’s southern side is a fourth-century baptismal font, the oldest and best preserved in the entire east Orthodox. The church also houses the Byzantine Museum, whose collection features icons, wood carvings, and other religious relics.

In Paroikia, next to the public High school of the region, you can visit the Archaeological Museum of Paros. Its collection includes Neolithic exhibits from the prehistoric settlement at Saliagos, including the marble “fat lady” figurine and exquisite pottery. One of its prized holdings is a fifth-century-B.C. statue of Nike, depicted as a winged female form. Another important exhibit is a colossal statue of the goddess Artemis that stands 3.7 meters trall and was found at Dilio, a seated female deity, and the lower half of a statue of Athena—all dated to the fifth century B.C. The museum’s collection includes the Parian chronicle, one of the most important monuments of Greek history. The chronicle is a marble tablet, dating from the third century B.C. and engraved with 134 verses detailing a period spanning 1,318 years, from 1528 B.C. to 263 B.C. The largest piece of the chronicle is in the Oxford museum.

The Castle (Kastro) was built by the Duke of Naxos, Marcos Sanudos, in the 13th century. Within kastro’s walls are a number of chapels, many built into the outer walls, such as Panagia Stavrou (1514), Agia Anna, Agios Markos, Agios Stylianos, and the architecturally stunning church of Agios Konstantinos with its covered courtyard and amazing view to the sea, one of the prettiest in the Aegean Sea.
Recent excavations in Paros brought in the surface the ancient cemetery of Paros which is dated at the end of the 8th century B.C. up to the beginnings 3rd century. The cemetery is located near the harbour of Paroikia, in the coastal street. In your visit there you can see discoveries and photographic material from older excavations made in the region.

To the south side, near to Agia Anna hill, there is a sanctuary dedicated to the healing god Asclepios.  It is a building of the 4th century with exceptional architecture of an open air temple built around a spring. Traces of a temple dedicated to Apollo Pythios has been found nearby.
Dilio was founded as a cult centre in the fifth century B.C. on a hilltop facing towards Delos at the northern end of Paroikia bay. Apollo Delios was worshipped at the temple, which featured a peribolos and altar as well as an area for symposia. A Cycladic cemetery dated to the third millennium B.C. was found nearby.

The Byzantine Museum of Naoussa is housed in the church of Agios Athanasios dated in the 17th-century, near the western approach of the village. You can see the collection numbers over 100 Byzantine icons dated from the 15th through the 19th century; most are works of Parian iconographers and artists.

The Folklore museum is located in Naoussa. You can visit the museum and see a big collection of traditional costumes from various areas of Greece.
The Venetian castle of Naoussa is also one of the most beautiful sights of the island. The sea-lashed fortifications protect the harbour from the north, were built in the 15th century by the Sommaripa dynasty.
Kefalos Hill is located in the east side of Marpissa. It is capped by the Monastery of Ayios Antonios, which was founded in the 17th century. You have to walk roughly for a half hour from the path of Marpissa in order to reach the monastery. The path is very interestiing for those who love hiking. You can visit the monastery only in morning hours during the summer months.

The Valley of Butterflies is one of the most important habitats in Greece. It is located near the road that connects Paroikia with Alyki. In a distance of 5 km from Paroikia you will meet the Monastery of Chistos Dasousa; Slightly further west you reach Valley of Butterflies.