Saint Paraskevi Church at Houdetsi
At the highest point of Houdetsi village, position Marolliana, we meet the cavernous chapel of Agia Paraskevi. It is a very small temple within a carved room, almost square shape, which was possible carved in a preexisting cave. According to Paul Faure it was a Minoan sanctuary several centuries ago. Agia Paraskevi is celebrated on July 26 by Christian Orthodoxy.
It has an impressive stone entrance that reminds of a carved tomb, while its interior is very simple, with many small icons around. Outside the temple, ancient tombs were identified during the works for building a road and they were unfortunately filled with debris. According to locals, these tombs hosted some huge bones, of supernatural size, and were of giants. There are many locals that have witnessed these bones, but it seems that the authorities have hidden them. The tombs were looted at the same time and we don’t have any findings from the tombs now. This cave and the rest archaeological sites of the area make us consider Houdetsi a sacred area in the ancient times. This is depicted on its name, which is probable to come from the Arab word quds that means holy, sacred.
