Hagioi Apostoloi
| Department | Archive |
|---|---|
| Collection | Byzantine Research Fund |
| Reference No. | BRF/01/01/07/049 |
| Level | Item |
| Place |
Hagioi Apostoloi Thessalonike |
| Dates | 1907? |
| Donor/Creator |
George, Mr Walter Sykes |
| Scope and Content | Capitals - Inscription. This is a preliminary drawing. It is labelled: 'The Church of the Twelve Apostles Salonica'. Further annotation in pencil survives. |
| Further information | The splendid-proportioned five-domed cross-in-square church of Hagioi Apostoloi used to serve as the katholikon of a monastery founded by Niphon I, the Patriarch of Constantinople, between 1312 and 1315. The church was converted into a mosque during the Ottoman occupation. The church, which constitutes the most representative example of late Byzantine (Palaiologan) architecture in Thessaloniki, has been influenced considerably both in terms of plan and design as well as in the iconography and style of its interior decoration by contemporary Constantinopolitan monuments such as the Karihye Camii: artists trained in the same workshop must have executed the impressive mosaic cycle in both monuments. Equally remarkable is the decoration of the outer exterior walls: blind arches on the side façades; a colourful alternation of white stones with groups of three and four red bricks; bands of large, tightly-interwoven double zigzags, hook, grille and cross-stitch patterns; pendant triangles and hexagon stars enliven the walling. The front of the narthex on either side of the portal opens in arcades while an imposing bell-tower dominated the west entrance. |