Pammakaristos Church, Byzantine mosque and museum in Fatih, Turkey
Pammakaristos Church, now known as Fethiye Mosque, is a house of prayer and museum in the Fatih district of Istanbul, Turkey. The dome rises above a rectangular main hall, while a smaller side chapel preserves Byzantine wall decorations.
The church arose in the 12th century as a Greek Orthodox house of worship and served until the Ottoman conquest of the city. After 1453 it was turned into a mosque, with the prayer hall and minaret added.
The name Pammakaristos means "all-blessed" in Greek and points to the building's roots as an Orthodox church. Visitors today see prayer niches and mihrab alongside Christian images in gold and colored glass, showing how the space served two faiths.
The building sits in Fatih near tram lines and bus stops that ease access. The chapel with the wall images can be visited outside prayer times, with entry through a separate door.
The side chapel holds depictions from the Palaiologos era, a flowering of Byzantine art in the 13th and 14th centuries. These images show religious scenes in bright colors that remain clear after centuries.
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