Eleftherias Square (Plateia Eleftherias, 'Liberty Square') is the main square of Kos Town, a short walk from the harbour. It was laid out by the Italian administration in 1934–1935, after the earthquake of 1933 had wrecked much of the old centre, and it is still framed by the buildings of that time: the Archaeological Museum and the arcaded Municipal Market. Between them stands an 18th-century Ottoman mosque that survived from the town before.
Eleftherias Square at a glance
- Where: in the centre of Kos Town, right next to the Ancient Agora and a few minutes' walk from the harbour.
- Built: laid out in 1934–1935 under a new town plan drawn up in 1934; the buildings around it went up between 1934 and 1937.
- By: the plan was by the Italian architect Rodolfo Petracco; the Municipal Market was designed by Florestano Di Fausto and completed by Petracco.
- What it is today: the busiest square in town, with cafés, the market hall, the Archaeological Museum and the Defterdar Mosque.
- Time needed: 20–30 minutes for the square and the market; add an hour or more for the museum.
From earthquake ruins to an Italian piazza
Kos was ruled by the Knights of St John, then by the Ottomans from the 1520s, and from 1912 by Italy. In April 1933 a strong earthquake devastated the town. The Italian authorities used the rebuilding to reshape the centre: a new plan of 1934 by Rodolfo Petracco brought paved streets, water supply, drains, parks and pavements, and Eleftherias Square was designed in 1934–1935 as the new centre of the town, a show square of the Italian period. Blocks of flats with shops on the ground floor rose around it between 1934 and 1937.
The earthquake also opened up the ancient city. During the reconstruction, the Italian School of Archaeology excavated the Ancient Agora beside the square, one of the largest excavated agoras in Greece. The Archaeological Museum, built in 1935, was made to hold the finds. Only one older landmark was kept as a link between the town before and after the earthquake: the Defterdar Mosque. Italian rule ended in 1943, and after the Second World War Kos and the other Dodecanese islands became part of Greece.
What to look for
- The Archaeological Museum: the two-storey Italian building of 1935 on the square, a protected monument, with a statue of Hippocrates from the 4th century BC and a mosaic showing the god Asclepius arriving on Kos, welcomed by Hippocrates.
- The Municipal Market: the arcaded market hall of 1934 around a large central courtyard, selling honey, olive oil, spoon sweets, local wine and krasotyri, the goat's cheese aged in red wine.
- The Defterdar Mosque: the square stone mosque with its dome and minaret, standing on the square.
- The marble octagonal fountain near the mosque, under a vaulted roof resting on six arches.
- The Aigli building with the Orfeas cinema, another Italian-era building on the square.
The mosque that outlived two towns
The Defterdar Mosque was built at the end of the 18th century on the orders of Ibrahim Efendi, an Ottoman defterdar, or minister of finance, which is where the name comes from. It has been suggested that a church of St Paraskevi stood on the site before. The building has two storeys: shops on the ground floor and the prayer hall above, under a dome carried on twelve arches. The earthquakes of 1926 and 1933 badly damaged it, and the Italians restored it, taking down and rebuilding the top of the minaret. The minaret was restored again in 2004–2005, but in the earthquake of July 2017 it collapsed, and the mosque has been through a long restoration since.
Tips for your visit
- Come in the morning, when the market is busiest and the museum is cooler than the street outside.
- Look at the square from the steps of the museum: from there you see how the Italian buildings, the mosque and the palms fit together.
- Shop for edible souvenirs in the market hall, then sit at one of the cafés around the square.
- If you visit the mosque, dress modestly and respect prayer times.
Nearby
- Ancient Agora: the excavated market place of ancient Kos, right next to the square, with columns, shops and the remains of temples.
- Plane Tree of Hippocrates: the huge old plane tree where, legend says, Hippocrates taught his students; the tree you see is far younger than him.
- Nerantzia Castle: the Knights' fortress at the harbour entrance, joined to the town by a bridge over what was once a moat.
- Harbour of Kos: the waterfront with fishing and excursion boats, a few minutes' walk from the square.
See Kos with World City Trail
Our Kos scavenger hunt turns the old town into a game you play on your phone. The route takes around 2 hours, with about 33 minutes of walking. Among the places it includes are Nerantzia Castle and the Plane Tree of Hippocrates. You can play in English, German, French, Italian, Dutch and Greek.
If you prefer a different format, there is also a self-guided walking tour and an outdoor escape game in Kos.
Take the self-guided walking tour of Kos →
Play the outdoor escape game in Kos →
Facts checked in October 2026.