Saint John Chrysostom Church, Thessaloniki, Orthodox church in central Thessaloniki, Greece.
Saint John Chrysostom Church is a three-aisled basilica with a transept and dome, measuring 24.30 m by 14.20 m. It is Thessaloniki's only neo-Romanesque building, mixing Gothic, Byzantine and neoclassical elements. The walls are unplastered rough local green stone without mortar joints, while the dome is plastered brickwork with twelve narrow windows.
The church was begun in 1907 by Thessaloniki's Bulgarian community as Saint George, designed by the Debar master builders Atanas and Georgi Mitrovski, and was to be consecrated in 1913. After the Greek army entered the city in 1912, the unfinished building passed to the Metropolis of Thessaloniki and Metropolitan Gennadios rededicated it to John Chrysostom. It served as a chapel of neighbouring Holy Trinity, housed Greek refugees after 1922, was returned to the Bulgarian community on 15 January 1942 under German occupation, and was consecrated as a parish church by Metropolitan Panteleimon on 20 September 1953.
The church began as the Bulgarian community's Saint George, planned for consecration in 1913 but left unconsecrated after the Balkan Wars. Metropolitan Gennadios rededicated the unfinished building to John Chrysostom, and it served as a chapel of neighbouring Agia Triada before becoming a parish on 20 September 1953. Three chapels remain: Saint Dionysios of Olympus inside, and Saints Olympias and Raphael in the basement, where a cultural centre operates.
The church stands at Perdikka 55 in the eastern Pyrgoi district, near the Anticancer Hospital of Thessaloniki, not in the centre. It began as a chapel of the neighbouring Holy Trinity church, and the basement chapels of Saint Olympias and Saint Raphael also house a cultural centre.
The church was built from 1907 for Thessaloniki's Bulgarian community as Saint George, designed by the Debar master builders Atanas and Georgi Mitrovski. The unfinished building was confiscated in 1913 and Metropolitan Gennadios rededicated it to John Chrysostom. On 15 January 1942, during the occupation, it was briefly returned to the Bulgarian community and its old dedication before reverting to the metropolis.
The community of curious travelers
AroundUs brings together thousands of curated places, local tips, and hidden gems, enriched daily by 93,565 contributors worldwide.