Zakynthos Castle: Major interventions will be made inside it in order to highlight its buildings

In important operations, inside it Zakynthos Castle, in order to save and highlight the buildings and ruins of the period of the Venetian and Anglo-colonial periods, the Ministry of Culture and Sports is proceeding. The studies of fixing and highlighting the buildings of the Castle received the positive opinion of the Central Archaeological Council.

As stated by the Minister of Culture and Sports, Lina Mendoni, “The Castle of Zakynthos is a particularly important Byzantine and medieval monument due to its historical importance and architectural value. Our goal is, after dealing with the structural and aesthetic problems it presents, to highlight its historical and archaeological value as well as its further functional utilization as a place to visit. Although it has suffered many serious damages, the surviving buildings are of special historical and architectural interest. The restoration project, with a budget of 1,500,000 euros, has been included, by the Ministry of Culture, in the projects financed by the Recovery Fund. With the restoration of the Castle, which we have included in the network of cultural routes, which are also financed by the TAA, we are handing over to Zakynthos a very important cultural and equally important development resource, as we strengthen the competitiveness of the island’s tourism product”.

The study concerns monuments, which are located, on a route, near the walls on the side of the city. Specifically, it concerns the buildings: Small Gunpowder Store, Great Gunpowder Store and prisons of the Venetian period, in the Holy Church of Agios Ioannis Prodromos, which is in a dilapidated state, in the headquarters-barracks complex of the period of the British rule. Basic principles of restoration are the treatment of structural problems and the aesthetic upgrading of the image of the castle. The studies were prepared in the context of a Program Agreement between the Ministry of Culture and Sports and the Region of the Ionian Islands, with the object of restoring and highlighting the monuments of Zakynthos.

The largest powder magazine is located near the south gate of the Bembo fort and the smallest near the Grimani bastion, next to the prisons. The large powder magazine is the best preserved monument of the castle with the largest interior space and has a high aesthetic value. The small powder magazine is very important, due to its position, for the current operation of the castle, as a venue for events and tourist visits. Despite its small size, it is a monument with great visibility and potential for exploitation. The prisons belong to a complex of two buildings that communicated through an internal courtyard. The two buildings differ both morphologically and structurally, but also in terms of conservation. The prison complex has a special architectural as well as historical value. The Holy Church of Agios Ioannis Prodromos was erected at the end of the 15th century. being the catholicon of a nunnery. During the Anglo-occupation, the Temple was used as a school and then as a warehouse. The earthquake of 1893 caused significant damage and since then it has been permanently deserted. Today, the Temple is in a dilapidated state. The barracks – headquarters complex includes two large rectangular elongated buildings. The barracks have a similar structure to the command post and are preserved in a dilapidated state.