Pontikokastro

The Franks who overran the Peloponnese after the Fourth Crusade raised this castle in the mid-thirteenth century, choosing a spot already layered with history: a Byzantine fortress stood here, and before that the acropolis of ancient Feia. They called it Beau-Voir, later Bel Vedere, both meaning "beautiful view," and indeed it commands the port of Katakolo in Elis. It ranked among the twelve strongest fortresses of the Principality of Achaea. The Ottomans likely destroyed it in 1460. The present name, Pontikokastro, means "mouse-castle," perhaps from its shape, though "pontikon" could also suggest "by the sea." The flat plateau, roughly 90 metres by 55 metres and 55 metres above the water, now holds only scant ruins, half-smothered by dense vegetation. The clearest survivor is a solid square tower, 8.40 by 8.50 metres, on the northwest side, possibly predating 1204 and the Byzantine era.

Heritage data from Wikidata, compiled and verified in the Atika atlas.