Goumenospilios Cave

Goumenospilios is a small cave located in Agiofarago Gorge , about 80km south of Heraklion , next to the cavernous chuch of Saint Anthony . Its entrance is very small, but the inner is very spacious, with a lighting hole on the roof.

The cave has no decor, but is nonetheless a historical place. Agiofarago has always been a place of asceticism, now managed by the Monastery of Odigitra in Sivas .

According to the legend, 300 hermits lived in Agiofarago and did never communicate with each other, except for the day of Resurrection . On that day, they gathered all together in the cave and sat on the 300 stones that were around.

Afterwards, they counted how many stones were not occupied, so as to estimate how many of them had died during the last year. In the background of the cave there are remnants of buildings and an old wall, the use of which is not known.

These may be remnants of an older temple or a building that facilitated the daily life of the monks who used the cave as a residence.