Greece - Arta, Panagia Parigoritissa

The church of the Panagia Parigoritissa, dedicated to the Annunciation, was built at the end of the 13th century by the despot Epirus Nikiphoros Komninos Doukas and his second wife Anna Paliologina. It was formerly the katholion (= main church) of a large monastery. It became a dependence of the Kato Panaghia monastery, when it went bankrupt. The church is mentioned for the first time as a convent for nuns 1578.

Seen from outside the church is a large, almost cubic three-storey building. It is of the octagonal type with a central dome and also four smaller domes on each corner of the church's flat roof.

The interior of the church is extremely elegant and lavishly decorated with wall paintings, sculptures (16th century) and a iconostasis, which replaced the original marble one. The nave is square and has no internal supports. The dome (main picture) - adorned with mosaic depictions of the Pantocrator and the Prophets - rests on eight pilasters, on each of them stand three rows of smaller columns. This kind of architecture most probably has not been used to other Byzantine monuments. This makes the church very fascinating and quite unique.

Nowadays Panagia Parigoritissa is a (kind of) museum, where one has to pay a small entrance fee. But it allows visitors to take pictures.