Parigoritissa is located at some distance from the other Byzantine monuments of Arta, and was probably built outside the city walls. It was the primary church of a wealthy monastery, subordinated directly to the Patriarch of Constantinople, who had sent a cross that was placed at its foundation as a symbol of his authority. But time proved a harsh adversary. In 1449 the Ottoman conqueror of Arta, Faik Pasha, removed columns for a new mosque, and the church closed down due to structural concerns. Sultan Bayezid II reopened the church in the 16th century as a gift to the Christians of Arta for their hospitality, but the monastery never regained its former wealth, and was eventually abolished.