Discover El Greco’s humble beginnings at his museum in Fodele, his place of birth
“The place where I was born is surrounded by orange trees, springs of drinking water and a Byzantine church,” Domenikos Theotokopoulos wrote in a note in 1606. This is where the El Greco Museum is housed today, in the tiny village of Fodele, about half an hour’ s ride westwards from Heraclio.
El Greco was born in the late 15th century as Domenikos Theotokopoulos. You can still see the tiny church where he must have gone as a child, before growing up and moving to Italy and Spain where he painted his masterpieces.
Stay nearby to the El Greco Museum
Some reproductions of these masterpieces are on display at the El Greco Museum at the far end of Fodele. The humble farmhouse that serves as the museum lies amidst the quiet woods and grazing sheep, enhancing the magic of the place.
Next to the museum there is a rest area and a cafeteria nesting under the shadow of centuries-old trees, while a bit further there is a stone-built water well, part of the post-Byzantine farm.
