Panagia Church at Agios Ioannis

At the mountainous forested village of Agios Ioannis , Sfakia district, we meet the small church of Panagia that celebrates the day of the Dormition of Theotokos , on August 15. It is located on the outskirts of the large forest of Agios Ioannis and is directly opposite the church of Saint John , which gives its name to the village.

Both temples are built in the Venetian Era but that of Panagia , although it is smaller, it is more impressive because there are several frescoes surviving in good condition. The temple, like most Venetian temples of Sfakia , belongs to the type of single-nave arched.

Around the chapel we see tombs and a separate arcosolium (burial monument), very well maintained. Inside the church, there is a white mantel lifted above the edges of the floor, a beautiful modern wooden iconostasis (not the initial one).

The frescoes depict scenes from the life of Christ and the Virgin Mary . There is also a supportive pillar that comes from an ancient temple.