Sights in Arta — 3 of Our Favourites

The stone turrets line the top of the metre-thick walls. The views from here sweep over the rooftops of the medina-like old town and beyond to the bald, bumpy peaks of the Serra de Llevant.

The walls were built in the 14th century to protect the town from pirates or invaders. There are walkways and a simple cafeteria along the walls, and a neoclassical church, which was built in 1832.

In a Neo-Gothic tradition, its construction began in 1573 to replace the original thirteenth-century church, which had become too small. In the seventeenth century works it is completed header, and the vault in 1816. The Annex is the seventeenth century bell tower.

Outside the building you can see the side buttresses supporting the vault and the lateral dome that illuminates the church. Inside there are up to 14 small chapels dedicated to different saints. The altarpiece was installed in 1906, and represents various scenes of the Transfiguration of the Lord. Other elements are the baptismal font in 1672, the organ of the nineteenth and twentieth century impressive stained glass windows.

Read our review of a visit to the church here.

Most impressive of all is the massive entrance portal, formed from three stone slabs weighing up to eight tonnes each. Inside there are several rooms and an atalaia (watchtower); the entire settlement is surrounded by a Cyclopean drystone wall.

The first excavations were carried out by Italian archaeologist Giovanne Lilliu, who focused on the village central area, the Talaiot and all the attached structures. Highlights in this area are the hypostile and the horseshoe-shaped room, among others. Excavation works were resumed 30 years later. The foundation of the settlement is dated circa 850 BC. It is believed that the village was built around the central Talaiot.