The oldest church of Xanthi

The oil painting by Xanthi’s painter Christos Pavlidis (Antalya, Asia Minor 1913 – Xanthi 1998) depicts the Christian church of the Taxiarchs in the old town, which was built in 1834, according to a surviving inscription. It is the oldest church of Xanthi.

The church is also known to the locals as Kavaki (which means poplar in Turkish), probably because there were poplars nearby, in the neighborhood of the same name. Oral tradition states that during the Ottoman period, when the construction of bell towers was prohibited, the Christians had put a bell on a poplar that was there, which was ringing because of the wind.

Creator: Christos Pavlidis (1980)
Source: The Digital Gallery of the Cultural Center of the Municipality of Xanthi