Most visitors to Paros walk past Ekatontapiliani without realising what they're looking at. Hidden behind a courtyard wall just steps from the Parikia ferry port, this Byzantine complex is one of the oldest continuously active churches in Greece — founded in the 4th century, reconstructed under Emperor Justinian in the 6th century, and still holding services today. The flow of passengers wheeling luggage toward the ferry gate barely pauses to glance at the low stone wall that conceals it. That is their loss. It deserves at least an hour of your time.
The Legend of the 100 Doors
The name means, literally, "Church of 100 Doors." Legend holds that 99 doors have been found, and the 100th will only be revealed when Constantinople returns to Christian hands — a prophecy that has quietly endured for five and a half centuries since the fall of the city in 1453. The prosaic explanation is rather more mundane: the complex has accumulated so many chapels, annexes, antechambers, and entrances over 17 centuries of continuous use that counting became folklore. The name itself first appears in Byzantine texts from the 9th century, suggesting the mystique is at least as old as the building's medieval identity.
What is not in dispute is the age or the significance. This is not a reconstructed monument — it is a living church, active in the Eastern Orthodox calendar, its stones worn smooth by generations of worshippers.
What to See
Enter through the main gate into a broad, sun-washed courtyard. The complex consists of three distinct churches built at different periods, each with its own character. The main Cathedral of the Dormition, dating to the 6th century, is the centrepiece: its interior features a carved marble iconostasis, Byzantine frescoes in varying states of preservation, and a remarkable sense of cool, hushed antiquity even in the height of summer when Parikia outside is boiling. The proportions are early Byzantine — wide, low, and grounded — rather than the soaring vertical drama of Gothic cathedrals, and the effect is intimate and meditative.
To one side stands the Chapel of Agios Nikolaos, the oldest structure in the complex and possibly the most atmospheric. An early Christian baptismal font dating to the 4th century sits near the entrance — one of the oldest surviving examples in the Aegean. The third church, the Chapel of Agia Theoktisti, is Medieval in date and contains icons dedicated to a local saint whose life story — shipwreck, island hermitage, miraculous relics — reads like something from a Byzantine adventure novel.
Don't leave without visiting the Ecclesiastical Museum in the east wing. It is small, and easy to miss, but contains Early Christian sarcophagi, carved marble reliefs, and liturgical objects that span more than a millennium of Greek Orthodox history. The context it provides transforms what you've just walked through.
Open daily approximately 8am–8pm in summer; entry to the complex is free, with a small fee for the Ecclesiastical Museum (around €2). Dress code applies: shoulders and knees must be covered — sarongs are available to borrow at the entrance if needed. The church combines perfectly with a morning in Parikia's old town: the kastro, the windmill overlooking the port, and the excellent Archaeological Museum are all within easy walking distance. From Antiparos Houses, take the 10-minute ferry to Antiparos port, then a short taxi or bus ride to Parikia — the church is visible from the ferry dock and reachable on foot in five minutes.
Architectural Detail
The building's survival across 17 centuries is partly a matter of geography. Set back from the waterfront, on slightly elevated ground, it was less exposed to the pirate raids that devastated so much Cycladic heritage during the Byzantine and Ottoman periods. The design is attributed — with some scholarly dispute — to Isidore of Miletus, one of the two architects responsible for Hagia Sophia in Constantinople. Whether or not the attribution holds, the structural sophistication is evident: the main cathedral has withstood earthquakes that levelled newer buildings nearby.
The stone used throughout is Parian marble — the same translucent white stone, famous since antiquity for its luminous quality, that supplied sculptors from Phidias to Michelangelo. Walking the courtyard in morning light, when the marble glows faintly warm, it is not difficult to understand why this particular stone was prized above all others in the ancient world.
When to Visit
Early morning — between 8am and 10am — is the ideal window. The courtyard is quiet, the light is gentle and raking rather than the flat overhead blaze of midday, and the interior of the cathedral has a meditative stillness that is genuinely moving. Avoid the midday hours in July and August, when organised tour groups pass through from the cruise tenders and larger ferries, filling the courtyard briefly and noisily before moving on.
If your stay overlaps with the Feast of the Assumption on 15 August, the church is worth visiting for the occasion alone. The Assumption of the Virgin Mary is one of the most important dates in the Orthodox calendar, and Ekatontapiliani draws pilgrims from across Greece for an all-night liturgy that begins at dusk and continues until dawn. The combination of candlelight, Byzantine chant, and the ancient stone is something you won't easily forget — and a reminder that this building is not a museum, but a living centre of faith that has been continuously used for over sixteen hundred years.