2 CORFU PANORAMA English_1

Paleopolis
Basilica of Paleopolis
In the area of Paleopolis we come across the Basilica of
Paleopolis, an important early Christian monument.
Situated opposite Mon Repo, where the ancient city center
was located. It was built in the 5 th AD century and it was one
of the largest basilicas of that period, five-aisled, with two
narthexes, adorned with many sculptures and mosaics.
The church was dedicated to Santa Kerkyra. The Basilica of
Paleopolis was destroyed during the raids of the 6 th century
and in its place was built a smaller three-aisled, which was
also destroyed in the 11 th century. In 1537, the church was
rebuilt and destroyed by the bombings of WW II.
Today the church is ruined, without its roof.
The estate of Mon Repo (Mon Repo means “my rest”), in
Paleopolis, is the largest green lung of the city with a total
extent of 240,000 m2. Within the limits of the estate were
discovered the ruins of the ancient temples of Hera and
Apollo.
Mon Repo
Mon Repo was built in 1828-31 as a holiday house of the
commissioner Lord Fred Adam. It is also a work of Whitemore.
It is a building with simple forms, large windows and a
typical application of the morphological characteristics of
the English classical tradition with the addition of Greek
elements.
After the Union, it was granted by the City to King George I,
who named it Mon Repo. It was granted back to the property
of the Municipality of Corfu, that granted for fifty years the
building of the villa to the Ministry of Culture to house the
museum of Paleopolis.
Panagia Vlacherna - Pontikonisi
The monastery of Panagia Vlacherna housed nuns until 1980.
It is located on the islet of Vlacherna linked to Corfu with a
narrow corridor.
Pontikonisi is called the “ship of Ulysses”. The legend says
that when the king of Ithaca arrived here, Neptune turned
the ship in a green rock.
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