Monastery of Panagia Chrisoskalitissa
The Monastery of Panagia Chrisoskalitissa is an Orthodox monastery built on a steep rock by the sea at the south-western tip of Crete, 75 km from Chania and 4.6 km north of Elafonissi beach. Chrisoskalitissa belongs to the community of Vathi in the Kissamos area, and its church is dedicated to the Dormition of the Virgin.
The name means Our Lady of the Golden Step. By tradition, the last of the 98 steps that once led up to the monastery was made of gold.
The legend of the icon and the golden step
The legend of the icon is how the Holy Metropolis of Kissamos and Selino explains the start of the pilgrimage, since no written record of its beginnings exists. Tradition says an icon of the Dormition of the Virgin was found in a niche in the rock, where it had probably been hidden during Iconoclasm, between 726 and 842. A farmer is said to have found it after seeing the flame of a lamp there at night.
An earlier church of the Dormition once stood against the cave-like rock, with a second church of the Holy Trinity beside it under the overhang. When the community planned a larger church at the foot of the rock, to spare the work of hauling materials up, the icon is said to have returned again and again to the place where it was found. The church was built on the rock instead.
The golden step belongs to the same tradition. In the early years of Ottoman rule, the Metropolis records, the Patriarch had to sell the monastery’s estates and the golden step to pay the heavy taxes imposed by the Sultan, and the monastery was left deserted.
Desertion and revival in the 19th century
The present monastery stands on the site of an older one. The Ephorate of Antiquities of Chania records that a communal monastery of Saint Nicholas stood here first, although no one knows when or how it was abandoned.
On Easter Day 1824, Ottoman and Egyptian forces carried out a massacre at Elafonisi and destroyed ten churches in the area. According to the Metropolis, they passed the deserted Chrisoskalitissa intending to raze it, but a swarm of bees nesting in the niche of the icon stand stopped them.
The revival came slowly. A monk named Ioannikios from Kythira was the first to settle after the desertion, and the monastery emptied again after his death. In 1855 the monk Manassis Karagiannakis, of the Glyniades family of Askyfou in Sfakia, moved in and rebuilt it with donations, adding new cells, storerooms and a guest house. He also brought the silver icon of the Virgin from Smyrna, and he died in 1866.
Emmanouil Kalitsounakis of Tzitzifia carried the work on as the hieromonk Meletios. A later abbot, also named Manassis, came from the nearby village of Amygdalokefali. Under him the old church was pulled down and the rock was cut back to make room for the present one, built between 9 May and 10 August 1894 and consecrated on the feast of the Dormition, 15 August.
Chrisoskalitissa in the 20th century
Chrisoskalitissa in the 20th century went through dissolution, war and rebuilding. From 1897 the monastery was served by Grigorios Plokamakis for more than half a century, and Nikos Kazantzakis mentions him in his book Report to Greco. In 1900 the monastery was dissolved along with other monasteries of Crete, and in 1940 it was re-founded as a convent.
After the German capture of Crete, the monastery sheltered soldiers, resistance fighters and people working for British intelligence. In 1943 the Germans occupied it and expelled its community, and a British aircraft then machine-gunned the Germans quartered there. The bullet marks still show on a low icon of the templon. The Germans left on 27 January 1944.
Much of the complex visible today took shape during major building work in the 1960s. Parts of the monastery have since been restored under the 2007 to 2013 regional programme for Crete and the Aegean Islands.
Things to do near Chrisoskalitissa
Chrisoskalitissa has 7 beaches and villages within 7 km, listed below from nearest to furthest.
- Swim at Voulolimni beach, 0.4 km north.
- Walk west to Aspri Limni beach, 0.8 km away.
- Try Stomio beach, 2.2 km north-east.
- Cross the lagoon to the pink sand of Elafonissi beach, 4.6 km south.
- Head south-east to Kedrodasos beach, 5.3 km away.
- Visit the village of Livadia, 5.8 km north.
- Drive to Amygdalokefali, 6.3 km north-east, the home village of one of the monastery’s abbots.
Getting to Chrisoskalitissa
Chrisoskalitissa lies 75 km from the city of Chania, at the south-western tip of the island. The settlement of Elafonisi lies 4.7 km to the south.
The monastery’s postal address is Vathi Kissamou 73012, and the Metropolis gives +30 28220 61261 as its telephone number. The village of Elos lies 11 km north-east.
Frequently asked questions
Where is Chrisoskalitissa Monastery?
Chrisoskalitissa Monastery is at the south-western tip of Crete, 75 km from Chania and 4.6 km north of Elafonissi beach.
What does Chrisoskalitissa mean?
Chrisoskalitissa means Our Lady of the Golden Step, after the tradition that the last of the monastery’s 98 steps was made of gold.
Who is the monastery dedicated to?
The monastery is dedicated to the Dormition of the Virgin, and its church was consecrated on that feast, 15 August, in 1894.
When was the church at Chrisoskalitissa built?
The present church was built between 9 May and 10 August 1894, after the old church was pulled down and the rock cut back.
What happened at Chrisoskalitissa in the Second World War?
The monastery sheltered soldiers and resistance fighters, then was occupied by the Germans in 1943. Bullet marks from a British air attack still show on an icon of the templon.
Location
Monastery of Panagia Chrisoskalitissa is located at Monastery of Panagia Chrisoskalitissa, in the Chania region of Crete. The map below shows the exact spot; Google Maps and Waze give turn-by-turn directions.
