Preveza Riviera
Religius Monuments
Agios Dimitrios of Zalongo
At the shadow of the legendary rock of Zalongo, under the impressive monument of the sacrifice of the people of Souli, is the historic monastery of Agios Dimitrios. It is connected to it through 430 steps.
It dates from the 8th century. Initially the monastery was higher, and was dedicated to Taxiarches. From this complex today survive only the ruins of the old catholicon, which was destroyed in 1942 from the German troops. In the second half of the 18th century the monastery was transferred to its present day location, at the foothills of the mountain, where there was already a metochi of the Monastery of Taxiarches with a church of Agios Dimitrios and a few cells.
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The new monastery evolved to an important religious centre, it obtained significant property, and had metochia in the wider area but also in Attica. At the same time, it played an important role to the liberation struggles of the people of Epirus, since it became the meeting place of the chieftains and its monks participated actively in the military conflicts. During its long history it suffered numerous destructions, while it was torched by the Turkish troops during the Greek-Turks was in 1897. The buildings were repaired in 1912, but were destroyed again in 1924, this time from an earthquake. After decades of decline, the monastery was reconstructed in 1962 and converted to a women’s monastery.
Lekatsa Monastery
The Holly monastery of Agia Triada Lekatsa is located in the heart of the Lekatsa forest, just 4 km off, on the northwest of Ano Myrsini village. It was founded in the 17th century and It is dedicated to the Birth of Theotokos.
The katholikon of the monastery is a single-ended wooden roof temple of great dimensions. It was built in 1744 and restored in 1870. Initially, the temple was dome shaped. In 1870 the arch was demolished and the wooden roof was constructed. On the southwest edge of the temple, a belfry is erected of kind of perforated wall that was built in 1813.
At the place there are currently three buildings of 19th century that are surrounded by a fence built on rubble. The pillar of the monastery is on the east side. During the periods of 1998-2001 and 2010-2012, the Monastery is being completely renovated, restored and renewed. Nowadays, the Monastery is open to public.
Agia Pelagia Monastery
The monastery of Agia Pelagia is at a short distance to the south of the settlement of Kastrosykia. It is built on a hillside abounding with olive trees, stretching from the outskirts of the settlement towards the Ionian Sea, next to the Preveza-Igoumenitsa national road.
According to the inscriptions, it was built in the seventeenth century and has been renovated twice, in 1613 and 1795. The stone iconostasis of the main temple seems to have been made in 1856. The date is written on the icons of the Crucifixion and the Holy Apostles.
The main church (catholicon) of the monastery is a simple four column cruciform inscribed temple with side spaces and a stone iconostasis dating to 1856. The cells are west of the main church and are rectangular, with three spaces for welcoming guests and an open balcony. Of all the buildings that are still preserved today, the oldest one is the pillar with the arch-like door, which bears an inscription of the date on its coating «Σ/Σ/ 1894».
The Monastery was built in 1894 on the ruins of a Roman building, some of which can be seen in the yard, while recently, a mosaic floor dating to the Roman era has been brought to light in one of the cells.
Avassos Monastery
At the territory near the village of Ano Kotsanopoulo, filled with olive and platanus trees, next to a small tributary of river Louros, is the Monastery of Avassos, dedicated to the Dormition of Virgin Mary. Its name comes from the family of Avassiotis, merchants that were active in Odessa, Russia, which must had the ownership of this territory.
It was founded in the middle of the 18th century but it seems that it existed already from the Byzantine period, as demonstrated by the marble architectural members and parts of a screen that have been walled-in at its catholicon. He obtained a rather large property and maintained schools in the nearby villages. It was destroyed by the Albanians and was ruined and then it was reconstructed in 1853 by the abbot priest-monk Kyprianos from Thesprotiko, with the assistance of the Metropolitan of Arta, Sophronios. In 1916 it became the metochi of the monastery of Zalogo and all its property passed into it, while in the following decades it was gradually abandoned and collapsed.
Today from the complex survives only the catholicon, with limewashed walls and a roof covered with slates. It was constructed in 1853, with the renovation of the monastery, over the older church that was built in 1746, as we are informed by the inscription over its southern entrance. It is a three-aisled basilica, whose central aisle is divided with two columns in every side and is covered with three domes, while the side aisles are covered with three arches each. The whole church is richly decorated with icons of 1853. Particular interest has the wooden carved screen with the relief representations from the Bible and the despotic images of 1891, works by the painter Karatzoulas from Preveza. From the rest of the buildings of the monastery survive in ruins the building of the cells, the inn and the watermill with the machine for processing the woolen textiles, while the stone wall that protected it has been restored.
The monastery is in ruins today and celebrates on the 15th of August.
