MONASTERY OF LEIMON (MONI LEIMONOS)
The Monastery of Leimon is a men's convent, situated
in the western centre of Lesvos, at a 14 km distance from Kalloni, in a
fertile basin. It was founded in Byzantine years and was inhabited until
the occupation of the island by the Turks. The monastery was re-founded in
1526 by Saint Ignatios Agallianos, a significant personality who
contributed in the rebirth of both education and the Church. At that time
the well-known "Leimonias" school - which remained open until 1923-
functioned within the monastery's enclosure.
The katholikon (main church) was built in 1526, at
the time of the monastery's reformation and was repeatedly restored. It is
a
three-aisled basilica with the roof of the middle aisle higher than the
other two and a double narthex. It is decorated with interesting wall
paintings that date in the second half of the 16th and the first half of
the 17th century. Worth mentioning is the wooden-carved gilded templon in
the church's interior.
Today in the monastery there is an important library
with manuscripts and a vestry.
