Byzantine Museum of Antivouniotissa

The Byzantine Museum of Antivouniotissa occupies a 15th-century single-aisle church on Arseniou Street, on the Old Port waterfront of Corfu Old Town in Kerkyra, Greece. The church, dedicated to the Virgin Mary Antivouniotissa, takes its name from its position facing the mountains of the mainland across the water. It was restored in the 20th century and opened as a museum devoted to Byzantine and post-Byzantine religious art. The collection holds icons, ecclesiastical objects and liturgical items from Corfu churches, dating from the 15th to the 18th centuries. It includes works from the Cretan school, whose painters brought their style to the island after the fall of Crete to the Ottomans, and from the later Heptanese school, which blended Byzantine tradition with Italian influences. Notable pieces include large panel icons painted in tempera on gold backgrounds, carved and gilded iconostasis fragments, and embroidered textiles. The intimate scale of the building means visitors can see each work at close range, in a quiet setting that still feels like a church. Information panels in Greek and English explain the icons and their iconography. A visit takes about 45 minutes, and the museum seldom feels crowded, with the busiest times falling in the middle of the day when tour groups stop in. It opens daily from 08:30 to 15:30 and closes on Tuesdays. The ticket, about €4, is bought at a booth behind the museum, and it is included in the €15 multi-site ticket. The location puts it close to the New Fortress, and the walk from the Liston takes about seven minutes through the Old Town lanes. The museum pairs well with a stop for coffee on the Old Port afterwards, and its quiet interior is a good counterpart to the busier churches.