Description of the attraction
One of the most famous and revered Orthodox shrines in Greece is undoubtedly the Byzantine monastery of Osios Lukas. The holy monastery is located in an incredibly picturesque place on the slope of Mount Helikon, not far from the settlement of Distomo and about 20 km from the capital of the Boeotia nome - the city of Livadia. Osios Lukas Monastery was founded in the first half of the 10th century by the Monk Luke Styriot, whose relics are still kept in the monastery.
The oldest building of the monastery complex is the Church of the Most Holy Theotokos (formerly the Church of St. Barbara), the construction of which began during the life of St. Luke. The structure is a cross-domed church on four columns with a three-conch apse and is crowned with a dome on sails. Of particular interest are the cladding of the external walls (made in the so-called "mixed technique" using red brick, white stone and marble) and the interior of the temple, where carved capitals, openwork lace of cornices, marble floors and ancient frescoes have survived to this day.
On the south side, the main catholicon of the monastery, the Church of St. Luke (XI century), adjoins the Church of the Most Holy Theotokos. This is a cross-domed temple of octagonal shape with a circular bypass in the upper tier. The dome rests on tromps, and its drum has 16 small windows. The outer walls are clad with plinth and white stone with a multitude of marble inserts, which in combination with double and triple arched windows give the temple a certain sophistication. Undoubtedly, the interior decoration of the temple is also impressive. Special attention should be paid to the vaulted narthex, decorated with unique antique mosaics and colored marble, as well as excellent mosaics and frescoes of the naos and apse.
Among other buildings of the monastery, it is worth noting the refectory, which today houses the Museum of Byzantine Art, and the tower - the only surviving of the three monastery towers. There are also a number of different outbuildings and monastic cells on the territory of the monastery.
Osios Lukas Monastery has been perfectly preserved to this day and is one of the most important monuments of Byzantine architecture. In 1990, Osios Lukas Monastery, along with such famous Greek shrines as Nea Moni and Daphne, was included in the UNESCO World Heritage List.
