Walking over water, on an arid islet in southern Greece

Water in monasteries and churches was essential for the ritual ceremonies but also for the needs of monks and pilgrims. Therefore, its collection and provision were ensured by cisterns, placed in the closest possible proximity. Moreover, the association of water and religious buildings, usually a cistern and a monastery church, is typically interpreted based on the ‘cleansing’ (practically and metaphysically) properties of water: as a ‘purifying’ agent of the faithful’s spiritual impurities and ‘ablution’ of their sins.