The Archaeological Museum of Milos has been housed, since 1985, in one of the most beautiful neoclassical buildings in Plaka, the so-called "Katastimata" (Shops). On display in the museum are finds from various periods, like ceramics, vessels decorated with flowers, idols of worship, inscriptions and sculptures from the Hellenistic and the Roman Periods.
At the entrance of the museum lies a cast of the imposing statue of Aphrodite of Milos, which has been moulded in the reproduction workshops of the Louvre, where the original statue stands.
The Cave of Kleftiko, or "Thalassina Meteora" (Sea Meteors), stands in Hivadolimni on the southern side of Milos. It is one of the most impressive landscapes in all of the Meditarranean with its huge boulders which spring up from varicoloured waters in asymmetrical forms.
During Byzantine times, it served as a pirate hide-out since it offered protection from storms.
The Cave of Papafragas lies next to the archaeological site of Filakopi in Apollonia. It consists of two successive caves, accessible only by boat. These caves were used as pirate hide-outs during Byzantine times.
Right across from the cave, one can see the huge rocks of Glaronissia, which form a cave from end to end with hexagonal pillars of lava hanging from its roof-like stalactites.
The church of Panagia Korfiatissa is Plaka's cathedral. It was built in the 19th century and has a wonderful wood-carved, gold-plated screen and Cretan-Byzantine icons, collected from ruined churches of Paleopoli. Its most notable possession is a gold-plated casket of 1,600 which has been brought from Smyrne.
The Historical & Folk Art Museum of Milos stands in Plaka, across from the church of Panagia Korfiatissa. It was founded in 1967 by the "Union of Milians of Athens". For the folklorist and writer Zafiris Vaos it was his life and soul. He built it in a 19th century building so that its appearance would match its contents.
Among the exhibits are folk art objects, traditional attires, looms, hand-woven material and earthen household utensils. A library also housed there includes photographic material and historical documents.
The Castle of Milos is situated 100 metres from Plaka, and it is built on a rock 270 metres above sea level. The rock has a conical shape, its ridges are very harsh, and if someone wants to go up to the castle, there is only one way: the steep steps. The Castle of Milos has no walls. They used to build the houses close to one another in order to form a kind of fortification that protected the small settlement from pirate raids during the 13th century. There were only two openings, the door (porta) and "portopoula". The castle began to flourish, especially during the last centuries of the Turkish rule and after the liberation gave up its place to the capital city, Plaka.
It constituted the professional meeting place of all the famous Mediterranean pilots, who used to sit in a specific spot housed next to "portopoula", in order to watch the coming ships and be able to claim a position on one of them later.
The catacombs of Milos are situated in a small fishing village called Klima, 2 kilometres from Plaka. It is the only monument of its kind in Greece and constitutes one of the most significant finds from the early-Christian years. The entrance to the catacombs was squashed in the 5th century BC, after a terrible earthquake, but it was discovered later, quite accidentally, in 1840.
The catacombs consist of corridors 185 metres long in which the Christians used to find refuge or bury their dead. It is calculated that within the graves over 1,500 people must have been buried.
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