The Catholic Church “Agnus Dei”, which is now the Kos Metropolis, was designed and built in the period between 1926-1929, in the place of an old Muslim cemetery in the eastern sector of the city, based on the study drawn up by the architect Florestano Di Fausto and engineer Carlo Bouscaglione. In August 1927, areas for a semi-basement theater – a room for events and spiritual gatherings were designed in detail and other mass activities were designed in detail to be used by the National Association of Italian missionaries A.N.M.I. (Associazione Nazionale Missionari Italiani). The parish priest belonged then to the Franciscan Monastic Order and came under the Latin Archbishop of Rhodes. At the same period, 18 Franciscan nuns took up residence on the island for the proselytism of Koans to catholicism. The Romanesque style church had a tall bell tower, which was destroyed in the first period after Dodecanese integration into Greece in 1948. The church faces westwards, like all catholic churches. It includes 3 altars, the middle of which serves as a sanctuary, screened by a wood-carved iconostasis, that was installed in the 1970s.
The complex now houses the Cathedral (Metropolis) of Kos and Nissyros and now consists of the following areas:
1) The Church of the Annunciation of the Virgin Mary (in the center of the building above). When built by the Italians, it was named “Agnus Dei” (Lamb of God) and included an impressive bell tower, which was the highest building in the city.
2) the offices of the “Metropolis” (in the center of the building below). Serving the administrative needs of the “Metropolis” of Kos and Nissyros.
3) Episkopio-Canonica (south of the building). This is a two-storey house, which originally was intended to house the Catholic bishops of the island. After the liberation of the Dodecanese this housed the Orthodox bishops. This joins with a staircase and walkway to the main building.
4) Spiritual Hearth (to the north of the building, with a separate entrance). It was formed in a multipurpose room with a stage and can connect with the residence of the bishop and other areas of the complex. This configuration is maintained today. in this area you can find catechetical gatherings of the “Metropolis” of Kos and Nissyros.
In recent years the building complex has suffered significantly from the ravages of time and a radical renovation became necessary. This began in 2009 and ended in 2010, breathing new life into the entire complex, which now operated as a religious and cultural center of the city.
