Kariye camii

Kariye camii

Turkey
Istanbul Edirnekapu neighbourhood
Kariye camii (Church of the Holy Saviour in Chora).
The original church is called Church of the Holy Saviour in Chora and it is cinsidered as the most valuable surviving religious center of Orthodox Byzantine art as the interior is entirely covered by the finest samples of mosaics and frescoes of that era and especially of Paleologian Renaissance. The foundation of the church is dated back in 413-414 AC during the reign of emperor Theodosius, but the final form was completed between 1077-1081 at the era of emperor Alexius Comnenus. After the Ottoman occupation, in the 16th century, the church was converted to an islamic temple(camii),under the name Kariye and a minaret tower was added. Since 1948 is functioning as a museum protected by Unesco.
The figures at the bottom slipped by chance(fault) in the original photo. My first thought was to crop them off but,after second thoughts, I liked them to stay there!..