Listed 4 sub titles with search on: Sights for wider area of: "PERAMA Small town RETHYMNO" .
MARGARITES (Village) GEROPOTAMOS
There are also some fine examples of Byzantine churches in Margarites:
The church of Agios Ioannis Theologos has frescoes from 1383.
MELIDONI (Village) GEROPOTAMOS
Excavation works, which continue to be effected in the cave of Melidoni, have proved that the cave was used as a central place of worship from the early Neolithic age up until the Roman period. An inscription gives evidence of the fact that Hermes was worshipped in this cave. It also played an important role during modern times, more precisely during the Turkish occupation. In January 1834, the Turks besieged the cave, where 370 inhabitants of the village of Melidoni had found shelter, set it on fire and suffocated everybody in it. Their bones are preserved in the memorial sarcophagus situated in the first hall. The cave is open to visitors.
The cave is about 1,800 metres northwest of the village and is of interest because of the archaeological findings which are displayed in the Archaeological Museum of Rethimnon. The cave was also the mythical home of Talos--the giant bronze protector of Crete used to circle Crete twice a day, warding off its enemies. Legend says that the sorceress Medea removed his protective thorn and he bled to death. Melidoni was the site of a sanctuary dedicated to Hermes Talaios during the Classical Greek period. The cave is also associated with a tragic historical event that occurred during the Turkish occupation. Three hundred and forty men, women, and children sought refuge in it and refused to surrender. The Turks lit a fire at the cave's entrance and all the people inside were asphyxiated. There is a plaque commemorating these lives lost in 1824 along with a communal tomb in the cave.
This text is cited Nov 2002 from the Crete TOURnet URL below, which contains images.
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