Mourtzinos Tower

Impressive defensive complex of the recent years in Kardamili, Messinia, which today houses a remarkable museum about Mani.

The Troupakides – Mourtzinos, one of the strongest families of Mani, are found in written sources from the 17th century. and ruled the captaincy of Androuvista for more than 200 years. Their heirs, Maria and Eleni Boukouvalea, granted the complex to the Greek State in 1967 on the condition that it be turned into a Museum.

The permanent exhibition of the Museum is housed in the three-story fortified residence – ‘’onta’’. The exhibition mainly includes observational material (maps, engravings, drawings, photographs, models) accompanied by general informative texts in Greek and English, short captions, passages from the period, a chronology, as well as a small number of exhibits – real objects.

Its aim is to introduce the visitor to Mani to the social structures of the region and their effect on the special architectural physiognomy of the place from the late Roman – early Byzantine to the most recent times. Particular emphasis is placed on the physiognomy of the settlements during post-Byzantine times, which determines the physiognomy of the Maniatic landscape to this day. From this period, most examples of architecture are preserved, connected to the history of the place and the social organization of the Maniats, such as the complex of the Troupakis – Mourtzinos.

Source: Mourtzinos Tower