The ancient Vrykous city of the Dorians may have reached its peak during the 4th and the 3rd centuries BC, but this place seems to have been inhabited since the Minoan – Mycenaean era. The ancient city has been completely looted. Its carved tombs stand wide open with no grave goods left in them. The residents Christianized the place during the next centuries (according to reports of the Archaeological Service three basilicas were built during the 5th and 6th century) and used ancient materials to honor Ai-Giannis of Vroukounta at the edge of the cape inside a hidden cave.
Walking down the stone steps of the cave the visitor-pilgrim comes across the inner sanctuary of this rudimentary church.
References:The Broch of Gurness is an Iron Age broch village. Settlement here began sometime between 500 and 200 BC. At the centre of the settlement is a stone tower or broch, which once probably reached a height of around 10 metres. Its interior is divided into sections by upright slabs. The tower features two skins of drystone walls, with stone-floored galleries in between. These are accessed by steps. Stone ledges suggest that there was once an upper storey with a timber floor. The roof would have been thatched, surrounded by a wall walk linked by stairs to the ground floor. The broch features two hearths and a subterranean stone cistern with steps leading down into it. It is thought to have some religious significance, relating to an Iron Age cult of the underground.
The remains of the central tower are up to 3.6 metres high, and the stone walls are up to 4.1 metres thick.