[5] Scholars divide Cappadocia's many rock-cut monasteries into two main types: those with dining halls and those with open courtyards.

The main apse contains three bands of paintings: the highest shows Christ Enthroned with two angels to his right; the symbols of the gospel writers; and the Deisis with Mary and the disciples.

In the north arm of the cross are representations of the Annunciation, the Nativity and the Presentation in the Temple with the figures of St John the Baptist and Saint Stephen which must have been painted by a second artist.

On the inside of the narthex to the south of the entrance door are representations of the Virgin Mary and baby Jesus with, on either side of them, the archangels Gabriel and Michael, apparently painted by a third artist.

The Byzantine scholar Robert Ousterhout has suggested that Eskı Gümüşler may not, in fact, be a monastic site but the home of a nobleman with a private chapel.