The Touristic Info Halkidiki informs: Mount Athos - Monasteries and skites

Moni Koutloumousiou

Greek-orthodox, Holiday: August 6

This monastery was founded probably around 1150AD, although we are not quite sure who was responsible. The Greeks assume that it was an African monk, as the name implies Koutloumous,"the saint of Ethiopia." 

The other possibility would be that Prince Kutlumus founded the monastery. For the first time it was mentioned in a deed from the year 1169AD by a certain "Isaias, monk and  signed by the abbot of the monastery Kutlumusi". So it can be assumed that the monastery is named after him. This could be the time of the founding, the 11th Century. 

The monastery initially played a minor role in the Athos. Only later abbot of Imbros Chartiton took it in importance because Wallachia, Serbia and Bulgaria gave donations. Until then, it was in the seventeenth place of the then 25 monasteries. Since 1574AD it takes the sixth place in the monastery hierarchy. 
In 1428AD imputed Patriarch Ioseph II (1416AD-1436AD) the neighboring monastery Alypiou the abbot of Koutloumousiou. This meant a huge increase of power for the monastery. Noteworthy is that both monasteries were equal for three centuries, more or less.

Later, however, the decline of the monastery followed. It was temporarily Dionysiou Monastery until 1625AD when a Romanian prince issued new donations. In 1857AD, and 1870AD, the monastery was prey to two major fires, from which only Katholikon and the library were saved. 

However, a magnificent wooden temple and numerous murals from the 16th Century were preserved. In the monastery church there is an interesting cycle of frescoes from the 18th Century, "the entire spirit world praise the Lord" with goblins, a unicorn, and even a female centaur. 

The monastery’s subordinate is the Skit Panteleimonos.