Holy Monastery of Asteri (Holy Monastery of Taxiarches Michail and Gabriil)

To the north-east of the Monastery of Kaisariani in Ymittos, there is the Monastery of Asterion, that is part of the Petraki Monastery. It is dedicated to Taxiarches and is mentioned with the names Asteriou or Asteri, for which various views have been proposed, but research has given no clear interpretation. It was likely founded in the 16th century, as the architectural remains of the monastery date back to that time. The complex has the form of a fortress which develops inside a four-squared precinct. At its center is the catholicon, which belongs to the type of complex four columned, cross-in-square church with a tripartite narthex on the western side. Its walls are built according to rubble masonry and its dome, which belongs to the simplified “Athenian” type, is supported by four columns that are shaped by limestone plastered drums. The interior of the church was decorated by wall paintings, fragments of which survive mainly in the main church and the narthex. They are the works of a simple and provincial art, which date to the 16th century. At the complex, apart from the catholicon, today survive the cells, the refectory and the external area, the fountain.