The Greek Orthodox Church of Panagia Kapnikarea is one of the oldest churches in Athens. It is estimated to have been built in the 11th century, perhaps around 1050. As was common among early Christian churches, it was erected on an ancient pagan-Greek temple dedicated to the worship of a goddess, perhaps Athena or Demeter. When King Otto I commissioned the Bavarian architect Leo Von Klenze to design the new urban plan for Athens, the decision was made to demolish it. It was King Ludwig I of Bavaria who challenged the decision, saving the church.
The building, in the heart of modern Athens, along the Ermou Street shopping district, consists of a complex of three separate, interconnected units; these units were built in succession:
a) the larger southern church dedicated to the Presentation of Mary at the Temple;
b) the chapel of Saint Barbara on the north side;
c) the exonarthex with the propylaeum to the west.