The Monuments
A high wall surrounds the buildings, the catholicon (main church), the refectory, the bathhouse and the cells, so that, even today, they seem quite well protected. In its original design, there were two entrances, the main entrance on the eastern side and a larger one on the other side.
The monastery was built on the ruins of a lay building. The drawing of Kaisariani Monastery, done in 1745 by a Russian pilgrim named Barski, depicts the following buildings: the catholicon on the eastern side of the wall around the abbey, the bathhouse on the south side and, bordering it, the monks' cells with the Benizelou tower and the refectory in the western wing. Beside the vegetable garden on the southwestern side of the monastery, you can see the monks' cemetery and a newer church.
The catholicon and the bathhouse are the original 11th century buildings whereas the narthex and the bell tower as well as St. Anthony's chapel are additions dated after the Turkish occupation. The buildings are all disposed around a courtyard. The catholicon was on the eastern side, the refectory and the kitchen, on the western side and the bathhouse, which was transformed into the monastery's olive oil extractor during the Turkish rule, and, finally, the monks' cells in front of which there was an open arcade.
The catholicon is dedicated to the Presentation of the Theotokos in the Temple and had the basic cross shape, faithful to Greek tradition, according to M. Sotiriou, or the semicircular quadripartite according to Anastassios Orlandos.
The entrance of the temple was located on its western side without being separated by a narthex. There was another entrance on the northern side: with a marble doorstep and a Roman architrave. The narthex, which was surely built before 1602, is a vaulted ceiling with a cupola and lunette in the middle.
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