Overview

 
East of the ancient city of Gortys is the village of Agii Deka (The Holy Ten), which is named after the ten early Christian Cretans martyrs.
Agii Deka is an interesting village on the Messara plain. The place is named after the ten early Christian Cretans (Theothoulos, Satorninos, Efporos, Gelasios, Evnikianos, Zotikos, Pontios, Agathopous, Vasilidis and Evarestos) who were martyred here on the 23rd of December 250 AD, for their opposition to the Roman emperor Decius.
The 13th-century Byzantine church of the same name was built on the spot where the ten martyrs were decapitated. In the nave of the church is an icon portraying the martyrdom of the saints and the block on which they were beheaded.
There is also another church west of the village associated with the ten saints where in a crypt visitors can see six of their tombs.