Church of Agios Eleftherios

Athens

LoginSave

This 12th-century church, dedicated to both Agios Eleftherios and Panagia Gorgoepikoos (Virgin Swift to Hear), is Athens' religious history in one tiny building. The cruciform-style marble church was erected on the ruins of an ancient temple and its exterior is a mix of medieval beasts and ancient gods in bas-relief, and columns appropriated from older structures. It was once the city’s cathedral, but now stands in the shadows of the much larger new cathedral.

Inside, none of its original frescoes are preserved, but patches of paint remain on the marble door frame, another repurposed ancient piece.

Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

  • ATHENS, GREECE - OCTOBER 19, 2016: The Acropolis Museum is an archaeological museum focused on the findings of the archaeological site of the Acropolis of Athens in Greece. 572766724 acropolis, ancient, archaeological, archaeology, archeology, architecture, athena, athens, attraction, building, capital, city, civilization, classical, culture, europe, european, exterior, greece, greek, heritage, history, inside, interior, landmark, modern, museum, new, parthenon, sculpture, site, tourism, travel, view

    Acropolis Museum

    0.47 MILES

    This dazzling museum at the foot of the Acropolis' southern slope showcases its surviving treasures. The collection covers the Archaic period to the Roman…

  • Parthenon.

    Parthenon

    0.31 MILES

    Designed to be the pre-eminent monument of the Acropolis, the Parthenon epitomises the glory of Ancient Greece. Meaning 'virgin's apartment', it's…

  • Erechtheion Temple (or Erechtheum) with the figures of Caryatids at the archaeological site of Acropolis in Athens, Greece at sunset. It was dedicated to both Athena and Poseidon. Golden soft light; Shutterstock ID 2144514097; your: Erin Lenczycki; gl: 65050; netsuite: Digital; full: Digital 2144514097

    Acropolis

    0.29 MILES

    The Acropolis is the most important ancient site in the Western world. Crowned by the Parthenon, it stands sentinel over Athens, visible from almost…

  • Greece, Attica, Athens, ancient grave yard Kerameikos, old columns antiquity, archaeological excavation, archaeological site, athens, attica, column, difference, divers, grave yard, historical, landmark, remains, stone, stony, travel destination, various Old columns in the ancient grave yard at Keramikos Archaeological Site.

    Kerameikos

    0.73 MILES

    This lush, tranquil site is named for the potters who settled it around 3000 BC. It was used as a cemetery through the 6th century AD. The grave markers…

  • Odeon of Agrippa statues in the Ancient Agora of Athens, Greece 637930866 Triton, Travel, People Traveling, Ancient Civilization, Tourism, Looking At View, Cloudscape, Giant, Antiquities, Mythology, The Ancient Agora, Art, Stone Material, Statue, Sculpture, Archaeology, Speculative Being, Greek Culture, Number, Roman, Classical Greek, Ruined, History, Ancient, Old, Cultures, Famous Place, Architecture, Travel Destinations, Tourist, Roman Forum, Acropolis - Athens, Athens - Greece, Attica - Greece, Greece, Europe, Animal, Marble, Cloud - Sky, Architectural Column, Monument, Old Ruin, Cityscape, agrippa, odeion, God, Odeon Cinemas

    Ancient Agora

    0.37 MILES

    The Agora was ancient Athens' heart, the lively hub of administrative, commercial, political and social activity. Socrates expounded his philosophy here;…

  • ATHENS, GREECE - APRIL 8, 2011: Statue of hunter on the horse killing lion in Byzantine and Christian Museum in Athens; Shutterstock ID 1701764272; your: Erin Lenczycki; gl: 65050; netsuite: digital; full: poi 1701764272 ancient, art, athens, building, carving, culture, decoration, detail, greece, heritage, history, horse, hunter, landmark, late antique, lion, monument, old, relief, religion, religious, roman, sculpture, statue, stone, temple, tourism, travel, warrior

    Byzantine & Christian Museum

    0.81 MILES

    This outstanding museum, based in the 1848 Villa Ilissia, offers exhibition halls, most of them underground, crammed with religious art. The exhibits go…

  • G2NPXM Traditional Greek costumes on display at The Benaki Museum, Athens, Greece G2NPXM Benaki, museum, costumes, clothes, clothing, Athens, Greece, Greek, art, arts, capital, cities, city, traditional, costume, craft, crafts, cultural, heritage, culture, design, designs, display, dress, embroidery, museums, needlework, sewing, Attika

    Benaki Museum of Greek Culture

    0.57 MILES

    In 1930 Antonis Benakis – a politician's son born in Alexandria, Egypt, in the late 19th century – endowed what is perhaps the finest museum in Greece…

  • Ceramic vase like hedgehog in National Archaeological Museum, Athens, Greece. Remains of famous Ancient Greek culture. Old artifact, historical dishes, crockery and pottery. Athens - May 7, 2018; Shutterstock ID 1522798868; your: Erin Lenczycki; gl: 65050; netsuite: digital; full: poi 1522798868 amphora, ancient, animal, antique, antiquity, archaeological, archeology, art, artifact, athens, civilization, clay, crock, crockery, culture, dish, europe, exhibition, exposition, famous, fix, greece, greek, hedgehog, hellenistic, historical, history, indoor, jar, landmark, museum, mycenae, mykines, national, old, ornate, peloponnese, pitcher, pot, pottery, roman, showcase, sightseeing, tableware, tourism, tourist, travel, vase, ware, zoomorphic

    National Archaeological Museum

    0.97 MILES

    Housing the world's finest collection of Greek antiquities in an enormous neoclassical building, this museum is one of Athens' top attractions. Treasures…

View more attractions

Nearby Athens attractions

1. Athens Cathedral

0.02 MILES

This ornate 1862 cathedral is the seat of the archbishop of the Greek Orthodox Church of Athens. Far more significant, both historically and…

2. Oldest House in Athens

0.08 MILES

Opened after renovations in 2017, the 17th-century Benizelos home is a typical domestic structure from that period, with dirt-floor downstairs rooms with…

3. Church of Kapnikarea

0.12 MILES

This small 11th-century church, dedicated to the Virgin Mary, stands smack in the middle of the Ermou shopping strip. It was saved from the bulldozers and…

4. Museum of Greek Popular Instruments

0.14 MILES

A single avid ethnomusicologist collected almost 1200 folk instruments; the best are on display in three floors of this house-turned-museum. Headphones…

5. Bath House of the Winds

0.15 MILES

One of the few remnants of Athens' Ottoman period, this 17th-century hammam (Turkish bath) is also the only intact public bath building in the city –…

6. Tower of the Winds

0.17 MILES

This Pentelic marble tower within the Roman Agora, likely built in the 2nd century BC, is both beautiful and functional. Devised by Andronicus, a…

7. Church of Agioi Anargyroi

0.18 MILES

Tucked away in Plaka, this 17th-century church is worth visiting any time for its peaceful courtyard and beautiful interior decoration. On the evening of…

8. Museum of Folk Art & Tradition

0.18 MILES

The 1920s mansion of folklorist Angeliki Hatzimichalis (1895–1965), who wrote more than 100 books and articles about Greek traditions, is a window into…