Next to the majestic Cathedral in the centre of Athens, there is an unnoticed modest structure that should not be overlooked. This is a church dedicated to Panagia Gorgoepikoos and Saint Eleutherios. Many travelers mistake it for an inactive construction of an ancient city. It happens because of the small size of the construction and the shades of the buildings around it.
This strange structure has a remarkably complicated history that goes back almost a thousand years, and it still remains intact since it was erected.
The temple is a four-part, three-section narthex with a cross section. The arched roof is higher in the centre than the two side ones. The walls are entirely made of heavy marble unbleached stones and bas-reliefs. They come from ancient Greek, Roman and early Byzantine monuments. The windows are faced in unbleached marble slabs in height, and 90 complete sculptures on the walls create a unique Byzantine church decorative effect. During the construction the bricks were not used at all, excluding the erection of the dome.
The supposed period of the Church's creation varies widely. Scientists are still arguing about the exact date, or at least the century. It is known for sure that the period of its construction is from the 8th to 15th centuries, but the scientific community still didn’t manage to come to a more definite date. An ancient temple dedicated to Eileitia was located at this place long ago before the Church of Agios Eleftherios was erected here. The dates are confused because the old blocks of different periods of time were re-used in construction. Most of them are panels from early Christian and Byzantine iconostases, while the rest are Greek and Roman tombstones, inscriptions and architectural elements.
Originally the temple got the name of a “Little Metropolis” and it was dedicated to Panagia Gorgoepikoos. It made good sense at that time to build the temple using the older pagan structures. This cost less and was favourable, and it also helped the old pagan religious artifacts to disappear from the public access. An old building material “spolia” was often used at those times. As for the “Little Metropolis” in Athens, it holds a record in this area. The pagan objects were simply baptized: a cross was carved on them. The major part of its blocks have small crosses carved on them, despite the images of ancient Greek and Roman gods.
In the 17th century, the Little Metropolis cathedral in Athens bore the name of “Gorgoepikoos” and “Catholicon”. After the Greek war of Independence, it was abandoned. From 1841 the public library of Athens was located in this building, and by 1863 it was re-consecrated as a church. It was first dedicated to Christ the Saviour, and later it was consecrated to Saint Eleutherios.
A typical Byzantine enclosure pattern is common for this church — it is a cross-in-square building with a three-nave body with a central aisle higher than the sides.
The interior design of the church originally contained frescoes, but today only one of them still exists: the image of the Panagia (Holy Mother of God) above the entrance door.
The best way to reach the Little Metropolis church of St. Eleutherios is to walk on foot from the city centre. It is a short walk from Monastiraki and the National garden.
The “Little Mitropolis” is hidden behind the Cathedral on Mitropoleos square. In order to see this church, you need to go around the Cathedral on the right side.
