We experienced a special journey through time through the “Sacred time capsule” of the Old Monastery of the Philosopher during our excursion to the beautiful Arcadia and we have the pleasure to share it with you.
when the Up Stories located the Old Monastery of the Philosopher in Google Earth they really could not believe our eyes: nothing for her “.
A monument of almost 1050 years with a huge history but also unique as a construction that causes trembling to every visitor.
A few words about the history of the Monastery.
The old Monastery of the Philosopher is the most historic and oldest monastery of Arcadia (10th century) and one of the oldest Byzantine monuments in Greece. According to tradition, it was founded in 963 by Ioannis Lampardopoulos, the so-called “philosopher”, secretary of the emperor Nikiforos Fokas. The monastery took its name from this name of the founder.
The old monastery is located in a wild and majestic ravine and 200 meters above the riverbed of Lucius, in the pit of a high and steep rock. It extends into a narrow and elongated cavity. It is preserved intact and is a wonderful example of 10th century Byzantine architecture with remarkable frescoes. It is built with simple stonework and in its external appearance creates the impression of a solid architectural building without much grace. In this place are preserved today the Byzantine church (Katholiko), a real masterpiece of architecture. It is a four-column cruciform church inscribed with an octagonal dome. The church was decorated with frescoes of exceptional art, of which today only fragments survive. Remains of cells and other buildings are also preserved, the outer protective wall – built after the Fall – the ruins of two turrets above the monastery on the rock, a water pipe that supplied the Monastery with spring water, and a cistern.
The monastery is known as the “Hidden School”, because according to tradition, there was a school there during the Turkish occupation, which later developed – in the New Monastery – into an important priestly school. The monastery flourished in the 17th century. Period during which the New Monastery was built, but without abandoning the old one.
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