Rarely does one have the chance to stroll into twenty-four centuries of history and countless previous centuries of human presence, all within medieval walls, which surround 58.37 hectares of land. Even more rarely is one able to spend time in such a fabulous place, where, today, 2.500 inhabitants still share an amazing palette of multicultural influences.
The Mosque of Suleyman the Magnificent was originally built in 1523, by order of Suleyman himself, the conqueror of Rhodes. It was reconstructed and obviously modified in 1808, integrating the elements of neoclassicism, which was very popular in the Ottoman empire during the 19th century.
Hippocrates Square at the end of Socrates Street, the main shopping thoroughfare of the Old Town.
The Grand Master’s Palace, the most imposing edifice in the Old Town, was the headquarters of the leader of the Order of the Knights of Saint John, and at the same time a strong fortress. It was built in the 14th century on the ruins of a Byzantine fort. It consists of two storeys with a large internal courtyard. It was destroyed in the period of Turkish rule and rebuilt in the 1930’s in the magnifi- cent style we see now. Today the Palace is a museum, and its many rooms contain important archaeological finds from ancient and medieval Rhodes.
The church of the Panagia (Virgin Mary) of the Burgh, a late gothic structure of the 14th century. Bombed in the Second World War, only the sanctuary’s three apses remain standing today.
The famous Street of the Knights (Ippoton),
The archeological museum of Rhodes is located in Mouseiou square in the Medieval town, near the commercial port. Building began in 1440 and was completed in 1485. It was turned into a military camp during Turkish rule. Exhibits include vessels, jewelry and statuettes from ancient Ialyssos and Kameiros, sculptures from the archaic, the Classic, the Hellenistic and the Byzantine period, clay vessels and tools from the caves of Kalymnos and Kos, etc.
