This post is part 9 of 17 of my trip to Istanbul. The series intends to give more than just a I-saw-this-and-did-that review. It aims to share the voice inside my head as I explore a world I’ve only read in books.
Chora Church
On the fourth day of my Istanbul trip there was no sun and no morning haze. JC and I went upstairs to the terrace and claimed our usual table. It was a chilly morning and the rain drizzled on my breakfast. By the time we were ready to leave the hotel, it was a waterfall outside. The Putin-looking manager at the front desk to call a cab for us. We thought the day would be a well spent hiding out in the Chora Church. Unfortunately, so did every single tourist in Istanbul. All of Istanbul seem to have come to the Chora Church to hide out from the rain.
The Chora Church (pronounced Cora) is located in the Edirnekapi district of Istanbul. It is a small Byzantine church that was converted into a mosque during the Ottoman Empire. The interior is plastered with beautiful mosaics and frescoes. They extended from wall to ceiling. Everything was above eye level for me. I was forced to crank my head to a 90 degree angle to appreciate the beauty. I appreciated it well until I started getting dizzy from spinning around in an attempt to take pictures, which constricted blood circulation to my head. Below are a few images from the church:
The Virgin and Child Parecclesion
Anastasis
I guess the only way is to keep on erasing them. But hey that’s too much of a work. He needs to...
Whoa – a blizzard in Istanbul? Do you have any pictures to share? I’d love to see how the city looks covered in snow. I’ve seen a black and white picture of it in Orhan Pamuk’s book “Istanbul: Memories and the City.”
Amazing place, no? I actually had a sunny day but cold. It was several days after a sudden blizzard shut down the whole city. Hard to imagine what life was like in those beautiful but stone cold places back before space heaters and Thinsulate!
It use to be a church before it was turned into a mosque during the Ottoman Empire. The iconic images were covered in plaster during the Ottoman reign. I think maybe that’s why some of the mosaics and frescoes have been damaged.
Monica, sounds lovely and interesting. Question…I thought Mosques could not have images of people…so why did they keep the saints on the cuppola? Hmmmmm
Thanks! There will be plenty of pictures. Stay tuned!
Haha I guess the Chora Church was made for rainy days. The detail of the last image is even more defined in person. It’s art like this that’s so irresistable. I always have really bad urges to touch. I get too curious when it comes to art.
Wow!!! Super nice! Those images inside the church were simply amazing.
Keep ‘em coming. 
I think it was raining during our visit to the Chora church too!
This site is definitely one of my favorites because of its incredible mosaics. Your image of Christ (last image) shows the change in the Byzantine mosaic style as it evolved from a flat representation to one more detailed and naturalistic — really beautiful!