Panteli Castle, Leros: A blessed Byzantine castle

Saint Christodoulos was the founder of the Monastery of Saint John the Theologian on Patmos, as documented in a chrysobull issued by Emperor Alexios I Komnenos and preserved at the Monastery of Patmos. In 1314, it passed into the hands of the Knights Hospitallers, who built its third and outer enclosure. Evidence of the Knights’ occupation of the island survives in the four coats of arms embedded at various points along the fortifications, attesting to their efforts to strengthen and repair the castle.

The Virgin Mary of the Castle (Panagia tou Kastrou) built in the 18th century in the name of the island’s patron, is to be found here; it features the homonymous icon, which – according to legend – was created by Luke the Evangelist himself. The castle is accessible by car, but also by a flight of steps leading up from the traditional settlement of Platanos, as the festive pilgrimage every August 15th stipulates. An ecclesiastical museum operates in the castle with rare manuscripts, sacred books, precious icons and other ecclesiastical treasures.