The present assembly of the monastery of Transfiguration had mainly operated in the second half of the 19th century. However, the existence of the monastery seal which is dated in 1656 shows that the monastic institution had existed there since at least the 17th century. Moreover, in the 17th century documents that are preserved in the archives of Venice, testimonials identified donations to the monastery by Panos Hieromnemon, a prominent origin from Ioannina who lived in Venice. But the great prosperity of the institution should be placed in the second half of the 19th century, when it merged with the neighboring monastery of Merciful. In 1822 the place was destroyed by Albanians and was built again in 1850 at the initiative of abbot Abbakum. The active monk was also the founder of Avvakoumeion Seminary which run from 1872 to 1922 in the western part of the monastery.
In its current form the church is a three aisled basilica. The nave is divided into three aisles by two rows of two pairs of columns and a pillar at the place of the sanctuary. The murals of the church, according to the founder were made in 1851 from Mount Athos’s monk Anthimos. On the side walls of the church one can see saints whilst on the western wall on the left of the entrance there is the representation of Abbot Abbakum holding a replica of the temple. Of special interest is the wood-carved iconostasis and the pulpit. The relics of the monastery are the portable icons of the Transfiguration, of St Theodore and St John of Ioannina and a silver reliquary with a piece of the skull of St. Barbara, which was made in 1846 when Abbakoum was the abbot.
Monastery of Transfiguration of the Savior,