Proph. Elias-Messinia

On the summit of Prophitis Elias, a 1,006-metre peak in the Kontovounia range, lie the tumbled remains of a small fortress of unknown date and origin. The site sits roughly midway between the castles of Saflaouro and Manganiako, about three kilometres from each, and may once have served as a visual relay between them. The builders used medium and occasionally large semi-finished stones, laid without mortar, to create walls some 2 to 2.5 metres thick; about 120 metres of them survive, though the original perimeter likely reached 190 metres. The layout is polygonal, with possible traces of a central tower, but no cistern has been found, which is curious. The dating is uncertain: it is probably medieval, perhaps Late Byzantine, though the drystone technique raises doubts, and the French scholar Antoine Bon suggested it might be ancient, renovated in the Middle Ages. The peak commands sweeping views over Messinia, the Messinian Gulf, the Pamisos valley and the surrounding passes, making it a sensible lookout post.