Tenos Attractions Tínos
Chief place: Tínos
Tínos is the southeastern continuation of the mountain massif which extends from Euboea by way of Ándros. Its highest peak is Mt Tsikniás (713m/2,339ft), at the east end of the island. The inhabitants live by farming (terraced fields). Characteristic features of the landscape are the Venetian-style tower-like dovecots, of which there are some 1,300. There are also numerous windmills.
In ancient times, from the third century B.C. onwards, the sanctuary of Poseidon and Amphitrite on Tenos was a major religious center, and in more recent times, since the early 19th century, the island has possessed a leading shrine of the Orthodox church. Held by Venice from 1207 to 1712, Tínos had the longest period of Frankish occupation of any part of Greece, and in consequence its population includes a considerable proportion of Roman Catholics. The Orthodox population began to increase from 1822, when - during the war of liberation from the Turks - a nun named Pelagia, guided by a vision, found a wonderworking icon of the Panayía, which soon became the object of annual pilgrimages on the feasts of the Annunciation (March 25) and Dormition (August 15), so that Tínos developed into a kind of Greek Lourdes.
The island came into international prominence when on August 15, 1940, two months before Mussolini's declaration of war, an Italian submarine torpedoed the Greek cruiser "Elli", which was lying in Tínos harbor for the feast of the Dormition.
Tínos is the southeastern continuation of the mountain massif which extends from Euboea by way of Ándros. Its highest peak is Mt Tsikniás (713m/2,339ft), at the east end of the island. The inhabitants live by farming (terraced fields). Characteristic features of the landscape are the Venetian-style tower-like dovecots, of which there are some 1,300. There are also numerous windmills.
In ancient times, from the third century B.C. onwards, the sanctuary of Poseidon and Amphitrite on Tenos was a major religious center, and in more recent times, since the early 19th century, the island has possessed a leading shrine of the Orthodox church. Held by Venice from 1207 to 1712, Tínos had the longest period of Frankish occupation of any part of Greece, and in consequence its population includes a considerable proportion of Roman Catholics. The Orthodox population began to increase from 1822, when - during the war of liberation from the Turks - a nun named Pelagia, guided by a vision, found a wonderworking icon of the Panayía, which soon became the object of annual pilgrimages on the feasts of the Annunciation (March 25) and Dormition (August 15), so that Tínos developed into a kind of Greek Lourdes.
The island came into international prominence when on August 15, 1940, two months before Mussolini's declaration of war, an Italian submarine torpedoed the Greek cruiser "Elli", which was lying in Tínos harbor for the feast of the Dormition.
Tínos - Panayía Evangelístria
From the harbor at Tínos a broad processional way leads up (15-minute walk) to the Orthodox pilgrimage church of the Panayía Evangelístria, an imposing structure built between 1823 and 1830 using stone from the sanctuary of Poseidon and the temple of Delian Apollo. The interior is richly furnished, its principal treasure being the wonderworking icon of the Panayía Megalokhóri. From the marble terrace there is a magnificent view.
Kekhrovouni - Our Lady of the Angels
At Kekhrovouni, the Church of Our Lady of the Angels, or Panayia ton Angelon, has the appearance of a Tinos village in medieval times.
Mt Exombourgo
13km/8mi north of Tínos town, on the southern and eastern slopes of Mt Exómbourgo, a steep-sided granite cone 553m/1,814ft high (ruined Venetian castle; panoramic views), are the surviving remains - three churches and a fountain-house - of the medieval capital of the island of Tínos. The town was devastated by the Turks.
On the south side of the mountain there is a sanctuary of Demeter and Persephone.
On the south side of the mountain there is a sanctuary of Demeter and Persephone.
Panormos, Greece
In the village of Pánormos is the house once occupied by the sculptor Yiannolis Khalepas, now a museum. The neighboring village of Pyrgos has a school of sculpture.
South of Pyrgos is Istérnia, which has a church with tile-clad domes.
South of Pyrgos is Istérnia, which has a church with tile-clad domes.
Panormos Bay (Marble Quarries)
In the northwest of the island of Tenos, to the south of Pánormos Bay (beach), are a number of marble quarries. The marble is widely used in the building of houses.
Sanctuary of Poseidon
On the ilsland of Tínos, at Kiónia, 4km/2.5mi west in Stavrós Bay (ancient harbor works) are the remains of the Poseidonion, the sanctuary of Poseidon and Amphitrite, the Hellenistic or later rebuilding of an earlier (fifth century) sanctuary, with a marble exedra at the east end and a sundial made by Andronikos.
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Ásty
The present town of Asty occupies the site of the ancient capital of Asty (fifth century B.C.) on the island of Tínos.
