According to written sources of the 16th century there was a temple in the same place as early as the 15th century. From this phase, only a fresco with a representation of Supplication, of St. Nikolaos and other saints is preserved on the south wall.

Around 1800 the temple was destroyed by a fallen rock. It was repaired but in 1810 it was damaged again. The monastery consists of the katholikon and the cells on the north and south sides. The cells on the south side, where Ali Pasha was assassinated, operates as a private museum. The monastery was associated with the guild of the cobblers (tsarouchia was a type of traditional Greek shoes) in Ioannina.