A unique village that stands out for the decorative exteriors of its houses. The renowned travel magazine Travel & Leisure included it in its list of the 17 best small towns in Europe.
About 25 kilometers from the town of Chios, lies a distinctive «painted village» that dazzles Greek and international visitors with the intricate decorative motifs on its house facades. This is Pyrgi, one of the largest villages on Chios.
Pyrgi is one of the Mastichochoria, the 24 medieval villages in the south of the island where the famed Chios mastic is produced. The village has been preserved as it was built and has been declared a protected monument. Cobbled, narrow alleys, tall houses connected to those opposite by arches, and countless churches compose a singular scene found nowhere else.
Pyrgi, Chios: The village that looks like a work of art
This mastichochorio is one of the places worth visiting if you find yourself in Chios. Because it was scarcely affected by the great earthquake of 1881, Pyrgi preserves its medieval appearance on the inside as well. Its fortified layout was created to protect the village from frequent raids by pirates and the Turks, as well as to better cultivate the mastic trees. The village took its name from its large, tall tower, around which todays village was built from many small and large settlements.
However, whatmakes Pyrgistand out is the elaborate decorative motifs on the facades of the houses. These are the so-called «xysta»,a typeof facade decoration with geometric patterns in black and white. The technique is based on the black sand in the plaster which, after being carefully whitewashed, is scraped following simple or complex motifs, yielding black designs on a white background.
Its worth strollingthe villages narrow lanes and admiring the various designsof squares, diamonds, triangles, bouquets in a vase, storks, tree branches, etc. Every so often youll stop to snap photos of the beautiful buildings that make this village look like a painting.
Pyrgi has a large square plaza («livadi») where the village festivals take place, as well as many churches. Dont miss visitingthe Byzantine church of the Holy Apostles with its excellently preserved frescoes,the work of Antonios Domestichos the Cretan.
Near the village liesthe Chios Mastic Museum, on an areaof 12 stremmas, of which 5 are a mastic grove. The museums aim is to highlight the production history of the cultivation and processing of mastic, placing it within Chioss cultural landscape.
Pyrgi, Chios among the 17 best small towns in Europe
The American travel magazine Travel & Leisure published a list of the «17 best small towns in Europe», including Pyrgi among them. The article notes that the villages renown «is owed to the striking xysta - the black-and-white geometric designs that cover the buildings, arches, balconies, and bell towers of the village» and adds that these elaborate decorative motifs are a legacy of Genoese rule on the island during the Middle Ages. «One could describe them as a kind of "medieval graffiti"».
On Travel & Leisures list are small towns and villages in Europe that stand out for their charm and authenticity, such as Bled in Slovenia, Otranto in Italy, and Rothenburg ob der Tauber in Germany. Below is the full list of the 17 best small towns in Europe:
- Bled, Slovenia
- Sozopol, Bulgaria
- Saint-Jean-de-Luz, France
- Otranto, Italy
- Cadaqués, Spain
- Zell am See, Austria
- Gangi, Sicily
- Rothenburg ob der Tauber, Germany
- Seyðisfjörður, Iceland
- Otepää, Estonia
- Zermatt, Switzerland
- Óbidos, Portugal
- Rovinj, Croatia
- Castelsardo, Sardinia
- Ambleside, England
- Pyrgi, Greece
- Telč, Czechia
