On a picturesque hill to the east of Polichnitos, where dense olive groves and tall poplars dominate, is the Damandriou monastery dedicated to the Dormition of the Virgin. Damandri was a village in the area until the 16th century, which was destroyed during pirate raids, like other villages, and the inhabitants were moved to neighboring villages. There are two versions related to the foundation of the Damandri monastery; one considers the monastery urban in or near the village in question, the other considers it as a newer one founded by the remaining monks of an older monastery in the wider area, known as “Paliomonastira”, the who took refuge in the abandoned temple of Damandri village and made him the Catholicos of their new monastery.
The catholicon is a single-aisled basilica, historic with remarkable frescoes from the 16th century, while according to others they date back to the 18th century. and is the work of the hagiographer Chomatzas, a large part of which has been preserved to this day. Its wood-carved iconostasis is an assembly of various parts from old iconostasis of other churches in the area. The large old icons of Christ and Panagia Odegetria have been transferred, one to Panagia of Agiasos and the other to the Ecclesiastical Museum of Mytilene. After the dissolution of the monastery, the premises were used for the establishment of a nursing home, which operated from 1958 to 1980. Recently, the monastery was reconstituted, renovated and now has two monks.
