A fortified cave at the base of a rock, high on the slope above the road, about halfway between the villages of Vasaras and Veria in Laconia.

On the plateau at the top of the rock, much higher than the cave, there is a chapel of Prophet Elias, hence the name.

History

Fortified caves like this were usually part of a monastery or of a hermitage and were established during the Post-Byzantine period in many parts of Greece — mainly in the Peloponnese — in the 17th and 18th centuries. They served not only as places of worship and ascetic life, but also as refuges for the local population. Many of them were at times used as hideouts by klephts and armatoloi, which explains their fortified character.

In this particular case, however, unlike most castle caves, there does not appear to be a church next to or inside the fortification. Nor any other building. There was certainly no monastery, and probably no hermitage either. It was most likely the lair of a klepht around the 18th century.
We do not know more.

Sources