Νaxos’s prominent position in the Aegean Sea during Byzantine times (6th-15th centuries) is indicated by the large number of churches that date to this period and which is not rivaled by any other island in the region.
The number of churches with frescoes is estimated at around 120 — out of a probable initial total of about 200 — including those with iconography that has been found to have been whitewashed up to five times.
The Byzantine churches are dispersed throughout the island but with greater density in the valleys, such as in the Sagri area – where the early Byzantine fort of Apaliros has a commanding presence and the central basin of Tragea, where the mid-Byzantine Church of Panagia (Virgin Mary) Protothroni has been in uninterrupted service to this day.
The architecture of Naxos’s Byzantine churches comes in mainly three styles: the three-aisle basilica (to which most churches belong), the free cruciform (about 12) and the circumscribed cruciform (five or six of great importance).
There are also arched roof and mausoleum-type churches, single-aisle basilicas – with or without a dome – and a “three-in-one” architectural marvel with multiple domes, Panagia Drossiani in Tragea.
Many Byzantine churches lay abandoned for a long time and an inestimable number of frescoes are thought to have been lost due to dampness and erosion.
In the last 50 years or so, however, the archaeological service has carried out a vast amount of restoration and maintenance work.
Panagia Attaliotissa, a church dedicated to the Assumption of Virgin Mary, is located approximately 400m ...
Panagia Attaliotissa, a church dedicated to the Assumption of Virgin Mary, is located approximately 400m north of the village of Galini on Naxos. This cruciform, domed basilica is a listed monument an ...
Panagia (Virgin Mary) Theoskepasti, Kastro’s Orthodox Church, is located directly behind the Catholic Cat ...
Panagia (Virgin Mary) Theoskepasti, Kastro’s Orthodox Church, is located directly behind the Catholic Cathedral, and next to the Catholic Episcopal Palace on Naxos. This church is double-aisled, its s ...
About 1.5km SW of the settlement of Atsipapi, at Loiri on Naxos, is the 9th century Byzantine church of P ...
About 1.5km SW of the settlement of Atsipapi, at Loiri on Naxos, is the 9th century Byzantine church of Panagia (Virgin Mary) Kera. Its architectural style is the rare transitional cruciform, circumsc ...
Panagia (Virgin Mary) Myrtidiotissa, a whitewashed chapel on a islet in the middle of Naxos harbor, stand ...
Panagia (Virgin Mary) Myrtidiotissa, a whitewashed chapel on a islet in the middle of Naxos harbor, stands as the island’s first picturesque sight that greets visitors. According to historical sources ...
The Church of Panagia (Virgin Mary) Protothronos at Chalki is one of Naxos’s oldest and most important re ...
The Church of Panagia (Virgin Mary) Protothronos at Chalki is one of Naxos’s oldest and most important religious monuments. Initially built in the early Christian period as a three-aisled basilica, it ...
The impressive Church of Panagia Filotitissa on Naxos, dedicated to the Assumption of Virgin Mary, is loc ...
The impressive Church of Panagia Filotitissa on Naxos, dedicated to the Assumption of Virgin Mary, is located close to Barozzi tower. The church is estimated to have been built in 1710 on a plot of la ...
The Ursuline School -School of Commerce on Naxos island was initially a monastery for Jesuit monks who se ...
The Ursuline School -School of Commerce on Naxos island was initially a monastery for Jesuit monks who settled on Naxos in the early 17th century, guided by French diplomacy and foreign policy in the ...
