EASTERN CRETE

C H A P T E R 4
Along the coast of
the Libyan sea
From outside the
church seems
rather poor, but
inside it boasts
surprisingly
beautiful frescoes
and holy icons
Back on the main road leading to the sea,
the white town of Lithines comes into view,
and merits a stop: it is a lively and well-kept
place with restored houses, flower-filled
gardens and labyrinthine streets. The site
was know as far back as pre-Hellenistic
times, but acquired real importance only in
the Byzantine and Venetian eras when it
took the name of the aristocratic Lithini
family who, in 1591, built the church of Ayios
Athanasios in the town square. Here was
buried the Venetian patrician Gerolamo
Vlasto, fighter for the freedom of Crete and
refined man of letters. Of the small castle
which was once to be found in the middle
of the village there remain only a few
fragments of reliefs which are now
incorporated into the church.
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