Agios Konstantinos & Eleni Church

Agios Konstantinos & Eleni Church

On Poseidonos Avenue in Glyfada, you can visit the holy cathedral of Agios Konstantinos and Eleni Church (Saints Constantine and Helen).

The story of the church dates from the distant past of the 1930s when the area was covered in pine trees, a small stone chapel and a large temple opposite it, both dedicated to the memory of Saints (Agios) Konstantinos and Eleni (Konstantinos the Great was an emperor of Byzantium and Eleni was his mother).

The erection of the large church began in 1935, thanks to a donation of 2 connected plots by the well-known doctor Konstantinos Baos and Alkibiades and Evangelia Tatakis. The couple also took over the cost of rebuilding the temple. In 1940, the parish of Agios Konstantinos and Eleni in Glyfada was founded and the church was completed in 1945. The inauguration was held in September of the same year by the Archbishop's Assistant, the Protectorate and the commissioners: Aristides Malliaris, Telemachos Kaisaris, Nicolaos Koumanos, and Evangelos Anastasiou. It is important to mention that shortly before its construction was completed during World War II, and specifically in 1942, a German bomb fell on the site, tearing down the small stone chapel and leaving only the large church.

The parish of Agios Konstantinos and Eleni originally belonged to the Holy Archdiocese of Athens. In 1947, its ownership was transferred to the Holy Metropolis of Nea Smyrni, which also included the Municipality of Glyfada, But since 2002, when the Holy Glyfada Metropolis was established, the church passed into its possession.

The church was designed by architect-engineer George Dragazikis and is a circular (rotunda) with imposing central dome and 4 smaller ones on the bell towers. The first thing that strikes you as soon as you enter this place of prayer is its huge dome reminiscent of the famous Hagia Sophia. It is divided by 32 rays into equal sections that have windows to illuminate the temple. The ceiling painting is also astonishing. At the highest point are the Pantokrator and downward the Angels, the Prophets and the Righteous of the Old Testament, and the 4 Evangelists. On the surrounding walls of the temple are figures of Saints, with Peter and Paul at the top, as well as the Saints of the temple, Constantine and Helen. The Altarpiece is also of particular significance as it displays Despotic Icons, the Mystical Dinner, and the Dodekaorton (the assemblage of 12 important festivals of the liturgical year).

It should also be noted that from 2006 to 2010, the Municipality of Glyfada radically renovated the courtyard of the church, as well as the surrounding sidewalks, where cobblestones were worn down or broken in several places.