GREECE THESSALY TRIKALA METEORA

Barbara Roussanou monastery

The monastery Barbara Roussanou, according to tradition founded in 1388, lying amidst majestic rock formations. The monks lived here according to the rules of St. Pachomios, with no personal posessions, under one roof and separated from the outside world. After several assaults and looting the gradual decline began and in 1940 the monastery was abandoned. But already in 1950 there were plans to use the complex again, and today it is an inhabited nunnery.

Above right: the Barbara Roussanou nunnery with one of the perilous ladders for ascending in previous times. - Below: inside the nunnery. The frescoes of the 16th century, like in the other Meteora monasteries, "mark a key stage in the development of post-Byzantine painting" (UNESCO).