Holy Monastery of the Archangels (Pammegiston Taxiarchon) at Pithari of Eresos

The Holy Monastery of the Taxiarchs of Pithari, Eresos, known as “Pithari,” is built in a hollow of a ravine surrounded by hills forming the shape of a jar (pithari), which gave it its name. At the bottom of the ravine a reservoir was created in 2002, lending particular natural beauty to the landscape. Its exact foundation date remains uncertain; some researchers place it in Byzantine times with reconstitution in the Ottoman period, while entries in Ottoman registers of 1548 and 1709 confirm its operation. In the past it also functioned as an ecclesiastical penitentiary. In recent years, the monastery has been restored through the efforts of the Metropolis of Mytilene, with restoration of the katholikon, cells and enclosure, and the erection of a defensive tower. The katholikon, dedicated to the Synaxis of the Taxiarchs, includes chapels, a church dedicated to the Panagia, a folklore and an ecclesiastical museum, and a library.