Holy Monastery of Saint Ioannis Kinigos (Philosophers’ Monastery)

On the plateau of a wooded hill, at the northern edge of the ridge of Ymittos, in a strategic position with a panoramic view towards Athens and the Mediterranean plain, there is the Monastery of Saint Ioannis the Hunter. It was founded at the beginning of the 12th century, when a monk from the homonymous monastery of Gortynia settled in Athens. At the beginning of the 13th century, the monastery was renovated. During the years of the Turkish rule (1456-1833) it continued to function and was dissolved in 1833 by the law of Otto’s Regency.

The complex is surrounded by a quadrilateral enclosure. From the original monastery, the catholicon and the pillar of the main entrance on the west side of the precinct are preserved today. The katholikon belongs to the architectural style of dicyonic cruciform inscribed church with an octagonal dome. Ancient and early Christian architectural elements have been incorporated into the walls, while the typical Byzantine brick-enclosed masonry is limited to the sanctuary arch and the dome. The interior of the church is decorated with frescoes dating mainly to the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries. Few fragments of Byzantine frescoes from the 13th-14th century are preserved in the main church and the sanctuary. The marble iconostasis, which was restored in the 1960s, also dates to the beginning of the 13th century.

Today the monastery is a women’s convent and celebrates on August 29.