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Saint Spyridon Church


The main church in the city of Corfu is Agios Spyridon, built in 1590, in which the remains of St. Spyridona. The beautiful iconostasis, completed in 1864, was created by an Austrian marble artist from the island of Paros, which was highly valued in antiquity. The door in the iconostasis leads to an expensive silver sarcophagus (1867), in which are the relics of St. Syridona.

The immensely revered patron saint of the island was the archbishop of Cyprus and in 325 AD. attended the Council in Nikaya, his body was transported to Corfu in 1489. Four times a year - on May Sunday, Easter Saturday, August 11 and the first Sunday in November - his remains are carried in a magnificent procession throughout the city. The ceiling paintings (P. Aspiotis, 19th century), which replaced the originals by P. Doxaras, depict scenes from the life of the saint.

When you leave the church at the narrow Odos Agiou Spyridonos, you will find yourself right in the middle of the souvenir and tavern district on the southern edge of the Kambiello district with its picturesque Italian houses. It was basically built from the second half of the 16th century, after the city walls connected the Old and New Fortresses, and thus took care of the protection of the inhabitants. Due to lack of space, they were created here in 17/18. stol. more multi-storey residential houses and to the gardens and courtyards people had to resign. Navigating the tangle of narrow streets is not easy. Northwest of Agios Spyridon lies the very narrow Filellinon, where there are jewelry stores and restaurants one after the other. It is here that one of the oldest buildings in this district with beautiful Renaissance decoration has been preserved.

A few steps further west you will find the Orthodox Cathedral (Mitropolis). In the south side chapel, the relics of Empress Theodora are kept in a silver coffin from 1868. It played an important role in the history of the Orthodox Church, as it decided in the 9th century in the dispute over the worship of images, iconoclasm, in their favor. The church was built from 1577, at the beginning of the 20th century, received a neo-baroque facade. The most valuable paintings include icons painted on both sides.