The katholikon of St. Francis monastery was one of the greatest temples of Venetian Candia. When Candia fell to the Turks in 1669, the temple was converted into an imperial mosque dedicated to Muhammad the Conqueror,  the conqueror of Constantinople.

The temple that was lost in time

The katholikon of St. Francis monastery was one of the greatest temples of Venetian Candia. When Candia fell to the Turks in 1669, the temple was converted into an imperial mosque dedicated to Muhammad the Conqueror,  the conqueror of Constantinople.

The earthquake of 1856, however,  that shook Heraklion,  destroyed most of it. In 1912,  the remains were removed,  and in the site of the temple was built the Archaeological Museum of Heraklion.

A remnant of the temple is currently in our city: the gate of the Courts, in the Street of Justice,  which was once the gateway of the beautiful Venetian edifice.