Holy Monastery of Agia Irini

Set on the foot of the mount Vrysina, on the northeast of the city of Rethymnon, the Holy Monastery of Agia Irini is one of the oldest in Crete and it is dated from the 2^nd Byzantine period. The monastery was destroyed by the Ottomans in 1896 and was left deserted for almost a century. The year 1989 marks the beginning of its restoration, a project that was finally awarded in 1994, with the “Europa Nostra” European award. Since then it operates as a convent. The nuns, whilst worshipping God, are occupied with holy iconography, the making of priests’ vestments, weaving, and preparation of traditional Cretan products (sweets, soap, etc.).

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