Eastern Thrace- Constantinople

Eastern Thrace• Tekirdag (Raidestos, Visanthi) Samian colony

• Church of Panagia Revmatokratissa

•  • Kirk lareli (Saranta Ekklisies)• Only cave in Thraki called Dupnisa used for Dionysian Rituals. Nisa was the mountain of Dionysos

• Silivri (Silivria ): colony of Megara• Anastasian Walls : 5th cent. comparable to Hadrian’s Wall ( 117 km long, 3.5 –6 m high, 3 m wide). They are 56 km long 5 m high

• 6 km west of Silivri• Ayios Nektarios lived here (1846- 1920)•  • Vize (Bizye) : used to be capital of Thrace. Church of St. Sophia, 6th cent.

• Ancient theatre, Byzantine Churches and monasteries (www. Thracian.info)

Vizye

Constantinople• Holy Apostles (today Fatih ) built by Constantine• Saints Andrew, Luke, Timothy, John Chrysostom, Gregory theologian

• Included a tomb for himself plus 12 for the apostles• Constantine died in Nikomedia in 337 & put in a sarcophagus in this church, it was the only church then

• Renovated later by Anthemios and Isidoros• Second only to Saint Sophia• Until the 11 th century all emperors, many patriarchs, saints, martyrs buried there

• Crusaders took everything to Rome, St. Marks, Venice• Demolished and rebuilt

• Theotokos Pammakaristos ( Fethiye Camii) built 1292

• One of the most famous Byzantine churches

• Many mosaics• Partly a museum

St Saviour of Chora ( Kariye Camii)

• One of the best preserved collections of Byzantine mosaics and frescoes anywhere

• Originally built in 4th cent. and was outside the city walls (chora = country)

• This building from the 11th cent.• Mosaics, frescoes made by Metohites in early 14th cent.

• Mosaics plastered over, then uncovered in the 19th, later re-covered and then again uncovered by the Americans during the WW2

• About 50 mosaic panels

Hagia Irini

• Oldest place of Christian worship in the city• One of very few churches not turned into mosque• It has excellent acoustics, used in music festivals• Unique: it has a synthronon, 5 rows of theatre-style seats for use by clergy during services

• A large mosaic of a simple black cross on a gold background dating from the iconoclastic period

• In the back is a cloister-like courtyard where deceased Emperors once lay in their porphyry sarcophagi. Most have been moved to the archaeological museum

• It is located inside the palace complex

Saints Sergius and Bacchus (Kucuk Ayasofya)

• Soldiers martyred in Syria in 303. became patron Saints of soldiers

• Justinian condemned to death for plotting against emperor. Saints appeared to emperor in a dream, so he was pardoned

• Justinian built church. By Anthemios it was an early experiment with a large central dome supported by an octagonal base. Resembles Agia Sofia built 527-536

• Connected to St. Peter + Pauls church built in 519 by Justinian. None survives today

• Turned into mosque in 16th cent.• Originally walls covered by golden mosaics. The original dedication in Greek survives

• Blue Mosque• Interior 53 m by 51 m• Dome diameter 23.5 m• Dome height 43 m•  • Agia Sofia• Interior 70 m• Height 75 m• Dome diameter 31 m•  • Built 532-537• Dome collapsed 558, again 563 partial collapsed in 989 & 1346 (first 2 earthquakes)

Constantinople Walls• The last great fortification of antiquity

• The most complex and elaborate system ever built

• Started as the Theodosian Wall of 5th cent.

• 6 km long with 96 towers 18-20 m high every 55 m

Pantokrator monastery – Zeyrak Djami