Introduction to the wall paintings of the catholicon

The frescoed decoration of the catholicon is much later than the time of the church's construction. The oldest layer of frescoes was recently discovered (1993) in the eaves and on the fronts of the arches of the eastern part of the church and probably belongs to a layer of paintings from the second half of the 12th century. A second very important layer is dated to 1312, according to an inscription of 1819 that survives in the exonarthex and which reproduces the text of the now lost founding inscription of the history of the catholicon in the years of Andronikos II Palaiologos. The inscription states; "This present divine temple was restored during the reign of Andronikos, the most orthodox king Komnenos the Palaiologos, with the assistance of the hieromonk Arsenios in the year 'soc' (1312) of the indiction 10...". The frescoes extend to the main temple, the exonarthex, and, to an unknown extent, under the post-Byzantine frescoes of the esonarthex (1760). They coexist with newer phases of decoration of the catholicon, dating from the mid-18th to the early 19th century. The Palaiologos frescoes of the exonarthex are preserved in very good condition, while the frescoes of the main temple have been repainted for the most part. The repainting refers, according to the perception of the time, to a "renewal" of the painting on the faces, hair and clothes, while preserving the original iconography and design of the representations. In other cases, the original painting has been replaced with a newer one, which dates back to 1789, according to an inscription on the lintel of the entrance from the inner narthex to the main church.