A cave with a fortification arranged as a tower-mansion in the remote mountainous area NE of the village Kakotari. According to the local tradition, it was used by the Geek warlord Panagiotis Belogiannis or Tourkopanagis.

Tourkopanagis might have not been the first user of the cave-fort. This type of modified caves were often used as hermitages and it is assumed –without further evidence– that this cave was also used as such a dwelling.
Tourkopanagis was active long before the Greek war of independence, therefore it is assumed that the fortification was created some time in the 18th century. However it is not unlikely to be much older.

The region was at the epicenter of the research of professor Frederic Cooper (Minnesota university) and his Morea Project ή MARWP (Minnesota Archaeological Researches in the Western Peloponnese) in the period 1990-1993. The subject of MARWP was the architecture of NW Peloponnese in a span of 3000 years. The cave of Tourkopanagis was studied during that project.

Structure, Fortification & Buildings

The opening of the cave has been closed with a stone wall more than 10m high. The interior has two levels. The ground level is covered by an arched stone roof which supported the floor of the upper level. There are traces of more floors with wooden partitions.

The depth of the cave is around 10m widening toward the top.

Sources