Gorgolainii Monastery

The Monastery of Agios Georgios Gorgolaïnis (or Gorgolaïni), 24 kilometres south of Heraklion near the village of Kato Asites, stands at 480 metres on the wooded slopes of Mount Koudouni. Its name likely derives from the swift flow of its spring, which could quickly fill pitchers. A document of 1320 already mentions it as ‘Ai Giorgis o Gorgos’. The current church, a single-aisled vaulted structure with two reinforcing arches, dates from the Venetian period; a relief plaque of the winged Lion of St Mark, set above the entrance, bears the date 1617. During Ottoman rule the monastery became a wealthy centre and a refuge for Cretan rebels, but the Turks burned it in 1821 and again in 1866. The chieftain Fragkias Mastrachas was killed nearby in 1868; his bust stands in the courtyard. A plane tree and a cypress within the grounds are protected natural monuments. The monastery still has no electricity, lending its services a distinctly older character.