Panagia Koubelina Church at Houmeriakos
The church of Panagia Koubelina at the village Choumeriakos, province Mirabelo, is dedicated to the Dormition of Virgin Mary (Panagia). It is the only surviving sample of cruciform domed church in East Crete, to which a vaulted transverse narthex was later added to the west, although this style is not uncommon in the west Crete. Due to the dome (koumbe), it was named Koumbelina.
The original church dates back to the 11th-12th century, while the narthex to the west was added in the last two centuries of the Venetian rule (15th or 16th). To improve its statics, bracing was added to the exterior walls in the 19th century.
The temple was completely restored in 2008 by the competent archeological service and today has a completely destroyed mural decoration, which shows the representation of the Pantocrator in the dome among angels dating to the 14th century. However, what makes the church very remarkable today is its very beautiful architectural features, such as the entrance gate with the embossed arch that ends in a flowerbed and the beautiful double-lobe windows.
