In a magnificent setting, above the fountain of the river Erasinos, is the sanctuary of the Zoodochos Pigi Kefalariou or Panagia Kefalariotissa. It was built according to tradition, in 1634, destroyed in 1918, and rebuilt in 1928 by the Argeans, and especially at the expense of the DANAOS Pantry Association located in Atlanta, America.
There are two key elements that make it unique. The first is that it is in an area where the greenery and the waters of the historic Erasinos River make it magnificent.
The second is that the temple is built inside a cave on Mount Haon. In order to visit this temple, we have to travel to Kefalari Argolida, a beautiful village 5 kilometers south of Argos.
At the site of the temple, there was an older temple that was destroyed on May 28, 1918. The devastation was caused by a powerful explosion in a munitions depot near the temple. 45 people were killed in the explosion. How strong it is is shown by the fact that windows of houses and shops in Argos and Nafplio were broken. The old temple is known as Our Lady of Kefalariotissa. It was 16 meters long, 6 meters wide, and 4 meters high. Nine of the 16 meters of its length were inside the cave.
After the destruction of the old temple, many Argitas were active in building a new sacred temple. In this effort, Argentine immigrants made the most of their efforts to raise 15,000. With this money and based on the plans of architect Karathanasopoulos, the new Temple of Zoodochos Pigi was built in Kefalari. The erection lasted two years from 1922 to 1924. Church of the Living Source in Kefalari Argolida.
During the German occupation, the conquerors wanted to build on the roof of the temple anti-aircraft artillery and cut the large plane tree next to it so as not to interfere with the artillery. However, after the intervention of priest Constantine Papadimitriou to the German commander Dasinger, both the construction of the artillery and the cutting of the plane tree were prevented. In this plane tree in the years before the revolution of 1821, Theodore Kolokotronis gathered Greeks and prepared them for the struggle against the Turks. The cave where the church was built was used as a refuge and a secret school during the Turkish occupation. But what was respected, the German conqueror was not respected by the Greeks nowadays, so unfortunately the old plane tree no longer exists.
In 1955 the beautiful bell tower of the church was built, with a 1,000 donation by Constantine Sotiropoulos. The design of the bell tower was made by the architect George Valatas.
Work on the surrounding area of #8203#8203the temple continues today. Inside the cave, 110 meters deep, a pilgrimage called Calvary has been built. In the same cave, there is a rock that hangs from the ceiling and stops just above the ground. In 1972 excavations were made in the cave, which revealed findings from the Paleolithic era.
The magnificent Zoodochos Pigi church in Kefalari celebrates the Day of the Restoration (on Friday after Easter). On this day a great feast is held and the faithful visit the temple from all parts of Greece.