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Fortified village · Mastichochoria
Pyrgi
Πυργί
Pyrgi is Chios's most visually distinctive mastic village, its streets lined with façades patterned in geometric black-and-white xysta.
Directions
Pyrgi is instantly recognisable for its black-and-white xysta, the geometric scratched decoration covering many house façades. The central square is lively and welcoming, but the real pleasure is wandering the lanes and seeing how the patterns, arches and house fronts change from one street to the next. Beyond the architecture, Pyrgi remains a living Mastichochori, closely tied to the cultivation and culture of mastic.
Why go
For Chios’s most recognisable village architecture and one of the best introductions to the culture of mastic.
Chapter 26 · The Fortress Villages→What to notice
- 1xysta techniques and patterns
- 2street-to-square transitions
- 3Agioi Apostoloi
- 4signs of everyday mastic culture beyond façades
At a glance
- Duration
- 90 minutes–2 hours.
- Best time
- Morning or late afternoon.
- Accessibility
- Historic lanes include uneven paving and occasional steps, so some routes are easier than others for visitors with reduced mobility.
More of the place
Verified · 12 Aug 2026
Sources S03, S07, S23, S25, IMG01. · see the source register in More.