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Photo: Ed89, CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons
Built between 1350 and 1365, likely served as the palace church of the despots. With its elegant cross-in-square plan, tall proportions, and refined masonry, it is one of the most sophisticated late Byzantine churches on the site, preserving traces of marble flooring and fresco decoration.
The Church of Hagia Sophia or Holy Wisdom is a Byzantine church in the fortified medieval town of Mystras, Peloponnese, Greece. It forms part of the wider archaeological site of Mystras, which is designated as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO. Built within the palace complex, it functioned as the royal palace church until Ottoman conquest of Mystras and its conversion into a mosque. Hagia Sophia of Mystras was made back into a Christian church when Greece achieved independence during the early nineteenth century.
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The most important surviving secular building of late Byzantine Greece. It consists of two large wings used by the imperial governors (despots) of the city. The complex likely developed in stages from the mid-13th century onward and includes a grand hall thought to have served as a throne room, as well as residential and administrative spaces. Restoration work has improved access, and the site is more regularly open to visitors than it used to be in the past.
Founded in 1249 by the Frankish prince William II of Villehardouin and later adapted by Byzantines and Ottomans. Its layered fortifications—keep, towers, and enclosing walls—reflect centuries of use, while the panoramic views over the Taygetos mountains and Laconian plain are among the finest in the Peloponnese.
Founded in 1428, is the best-preserved and still-active local monastery. Its elegant five-domed church combines late Byzantine and Western Gothic elements, especially visible in the richly decorated exterior apse. Inside, well-preserved frescoes from the late Palaiologan period depict scenes from the life of Christ with remarkable detail and movement.
Afentiko
Built between 1310 and 1322, is the most architecturally advanced church of the site. Taller and more complex than earlier buildings, it combines a basilica-like plan with multiple domes, creating a bright and spacious interior. Its refined design and surviving frescoes reflect strong links with late Byzantine architectural developments in Constantinople.
Dating to the 1290s, it's dominated by a large dome and rich cloisonné masonry. It features a spacious interior and later frescoes, now fragmentary, including notable warrior saints.
The Church of the Evangelistria Church dates to the late 14th or early 15th century. It follows a typical cross-in-square plan with a single dome. Later used as a funerary chapel, it preserves fragments of frescoes and distinctive carved capitals.