Sacred Pilgrimage of Panagia Grigorousa (Pammegistoi Taxiarches)

In the heart of Athens, among the archaeological sites of the Roman Agora and Hadrian’s Library, at the intersection of Dexippou and Taxiarches streets, is one of the most important pilgrimages of the city, the church of Panagia Grigorousa.

It is built at the location of an older church, the Byzantine church of Pammegistoi Taxiarches, who was destroyed by fire during the period of the Turkish Occupation (1456-1833). In 1922 the church was reconstructed and has maintained its form to the present day, with the exception a small expansion to the west, which took place in 1995. In 1948, with a Presidential Decree it was characterized as a pilgrimage with the name “Sacred Pilgrimage of Panagia Grigorousa – Pammegistoi Taxiarxhes”.

The present say church, of Neo-Byzantine order, belongs to the type of two-columned, cross-in-square church with a dome. Its interior is decorated with impressive wall paintings, work of the famous painter from Zakynthos, Demetrios Pelekasis (1881-1973), whose art combines harmoniously the elements of the Byzantine tradition with western art. A prominent place in its interior is occupied by the miraculous icon of the Virgin Mary. It is a relic that was brought by refugees from Asia Minor, and was donated to the church in 1945, and is called “Panagia Grigorousa”, because it fulfills quickly the prayers of the faithful.