In the town of Volissos, by the sea, stands the Monastery of Saint Markella Chiliopolitida. The Sacred Pilgrimage Church is built within the grounds, and two kilometres away is the Holy Spring and the site of her martyrdom. The red soil on the beach stones symbolises the blood of the Saint.
Saint Markella was born in the 14th century in Volissos and lost her mother at a young age. Although raised as a Christian, her father was a pagan. When she was ten years old, he forced her to adopt his beliefs, but Markella, frightened, fled into the mountains and hid in a bush. Her father found her, with the help of a shepherd and set the bush on fire, forcing her to come out.
Markella then ran towards the sea to escape, but her father shot her with an arrow. According to Christian tradition, on her celebration day, the rocks where she was martyred appear to show blood. In her final moments, she prayed to Jesus to hide her, and the legend says that a rock split open, concealing her body but leaving her head exposed. Her father decapitated her and threw her head into the sea. Today, the church believes that a holy spring flows from the rock.
In the churchyard, there are old cells that used to house nuns and now serve as free guest accommodation for pilgrims.
