Amorgos- Southwestern Amorgos – the western extremity of the island

The western extremity of the island

From Arkesi­ni the road continues west and descends to Kolophana (22km): to the right, below the road (400m before Kolophana) are some ruined buildings with a small, white, flat-roofed structure in their midst. This is the remarkable church of the * Panaghia tou Politi­ (also known locally as the ‘Panaghia Giorgiani­’): once a small temple in the midst of a protected and fertile area, it is now a chapel with three ancient columns and capitals (2 Doric, 1 Ionic) supporting a roof of ancient stone rafters. All around the immediate area lie other fragments of column bases, capitals, altars and part of an antique, stone olive-press.
   The continuation of the road west from Kolophana finishes at the delightful bay of Paradi­sa (23km), looking out to the offshore islet of Krambousa. The bay takes its name from the ‘paradeisos’ (the enclosed area in front of a church) belonging to an Early Christian chapel, whose remains can be seen about 15m back from the shore on the north side of the cove. The outline of the small church and its enclosure, its north wall, apse, and some of the paved floor, are all still visible. This harbour would have provided the shortest and most protected crossing to Naxos , via Keros.
   The track which branches north from Kolophana leads a further 2.5km to Kato Kambos Bay—the only truly protected inlet at this end of the island. It is a well-hidden haven at the head of a protected creek, with fertile fields directly behind the shore. The secluded coastal site is typical of those favoured by Early Christian communities for their churches, and it is no surprise to find that the chapel of Aghios Ioannis Theologos at the eastern side of the inlet is built into what remains of the east end of an Early Christian basilica. There are steps cut into the rock and many ancient spolia, including straight-fluted and twist-fluted columns, both inside the chapel and in the immediate area. A fine early Christian capital has been set on end in the stone wall to the south of the chapel. Even the small, 1950s church of the Dormition of the Virgin, on the water front to the west, includes a section of frieze with triglyphs in its front wall. The bay is often the haunt of Lesser egrets; and in the wider area of the valley between here and Aghia Triada there are Sardinian warblers; while at the eastern end of the island, the rarer Ruppell’s warbler is an occasional visitor.