Eleni Michou, Archaeologist The Monastery of St. Nicholas Filanthropinon or Spanos, is a landmark monument thanks to its imposing mural ensemble and is located on a hill, near the southwestern shore of the settlement of the Island of Ioannina. It is an institution of the Byzantine Constantinople family of Filanthropinon, who settled in Ioannina after the Fall of Constantinople by the Crusaders, in 1204. In 1291/2, Michael Philanthropinos founded or radically renovated the monastery, which was already established on the Island during the13th-14th century. The monastery flourished in the 16th century when, on the initiative of Abbots Neophytos and mainly Ioasaf Filanthropinon, it was refurbished, expanded and frescoes were made in the katholikon. In the following centuries, the monastery continued to have a special spiritual radiance in the area. Throughout its operation, it maintained a direct relationship with the city of Ioannina, receiving at times rich donations from expatriates of Ioannina, such as Zotos and Apostolos Tsigaras, merchants based in Venice. Later it was also connected with the Spanos family and that's the reason why it is often called the monastery of Saint Nicholas of "Spanos".