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Photo: Mstyslav Chernov, CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons
From as early as the 16th century, the windmills are one of the most recognized landmarks of Mykonos. Once this island was a great producer of wheat and bread. The area of the windmills has a splendid view on Little Venice and is the most popular place in Mykonos to watch the sunset.
The Mykonos windmills are an iconic feature of the Greek island of the Mykonos. The island is one of the Cyclades islands, which neighbour Delos in the Aegean Sea. The windmills can be seen from every point of the village of Mykonos, the island's principal village, which is frequently called the Chora on Greek islands. The windmills are the first thing seen when coming into the harbour of Alefkandra, as they stand on a hill overlooking the area. Most windmills face towards the North where the island's climate sources its strongest winds over the largest part of the year. There are currently 16 windmills on Mykonos of which seven are positioned on the landmark hill in Chora. Most of them were built by the Venetians in the 16th century, but their construction continued into the early 20th century. They were primarily used to mill wheat. They were an important source of income for the inhabitants. Their use gradually declined until they ceased production in the middle of the 20th century. The architecture of each of them is similar, all have a round shape, white colour and a pointed roof and very small windows. Such windmills are found in almost all Cyclades islands. One of these windmills has been transformed into a museum. The whole village of Chora and part of the harbour are visible from this point.
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Housed in a traditional Cycladic 19th century building, it has been in continuous operation since 1985. The mission of the Museum is the research and promotion of the maritime history of the Greeks and their engagement with the sea, from antiquity to the present day.
Lena's House Museum, a branch of the Folklore Museum, is an authentic 19th-century middle class Mykonian house, completely restored with furnishings.
Of all the churches on Mykonos, the most impressive is Panagia Paraportianí, a true Byzantine jewel. This whitewashed church, which building dates back to 1425 and was not completed until the 17th century, is the most popular and most photographed of the 400 churches on the whole island of Mykonos. It is made up of four chapels at ground level with another one above. Only one of the chapels on the ground floor is open to visitors, from early morning until sunset. The church is located in the Kastro district, the oldest section of Mykonos Town.
The Folklore Museum, housed in an 18th-century sea captain's house, brings together a number of collections of furniture, icons, pieces of sculpture, folk musical instruments, costumes and textiles.
A collection of traditional agricultural tools.
The exhibition of the museum includes a large number of vases, ranging from the prehistoric to the late Hellenistic period (25th-1st century BC), grave statues, stelae and funerary urns from the nearby island of Rheneia (Delos' necropolis). There are very few finds from Mykonos.