Ginas

On the rocky headland of Cape Ginas, south of Pefkoi on Rhodes’ east coast, stands a late-medieval watchtower, most likely built by the Knights Hospitallers in the 15th century. It formed part of their chain of coastal lookout posts around the island. The cape is also known in older literature as Cape Phoka or Cape Lardos. The tower is round, and its condition is described as rather poor. Access is impossible, as it sits inside a military restricted zone, so the surrounding ground is closed to visitors. Some scholars, including Michael Heslop, have suggested the tower and its enceinte may have evolved from an earlier Byzantine fortification. The 19th-century archaeologist Ludwig Ross probably described this very spot, noting a round tower from the Knights’ times standing on a pointed cape, with the promontory splitting into two arms to the east. Today it remains a striking but unreachable relic of Rhodes’ defensive network.