Situated close to village of Aghios Vassilios, itself 32 Kms from Herakleion, this monastery flourished at the very time that Christianity was threatened most, i.e during the Ottoman occupation, and after 1669.
It took over from the monastery of Aistratigos, in importance, shortly after that monastery – in the nearby village of Karkathitotissa – was taxed out of existence, by Crete’s new overlords. Being of later (17th century) design, there’s not the look fortification which other monasteries have, due to the threat of piratical raids on the island having been all but wiped-out, by the time of its building, and the Turks -who were, if anything, more of a danger to the monks, would not have been kept-out by fortification, alone. Instead it’s a very pretty structure, with courtyards and a marble relief, depicting a crowned eagle.