The castle is located at the entrance of the port of Kos. It consists of two fortification walls, internal and external. The interior wall has four circular towers at its corners. The external has massive bastions at the four corners as well as battlements and cannon openings. The two walls are separated by a wide moat and communicate with a bridge.
The castle was built from local stone while many items such as the columns, the bases etc. were second hand and were obtained from the ruins of the ancient city. Above the main gate there is a Hellenistic frieze with masks and garlands. On the roof of the entrance (main gate, Carmadino gate) you can see the granite columns which probably came from the Early Christian basilica of the Port.
Based on the descriptions of travelers we know that the inner yard was probably built before the end of the 14th century. The oldest building in the castle is the circular tower left of the bridge which connects the two yards. The external yard was built later on (around 1495). Its construction was started by M.M. D'Aubusson, was continued by D'Amboise and was completed by Del Carretto in 1514.
Between the inner and the outer yard on the north side, there was a warehouse which was restored during the Italian occupation and is now used as a museum and exhibition area of sculptures and inscriptions.
Open hours
- Daily, 08:30 - 15:00
Tickets
- Full fare: €3
- Reduced fare: €2
