This is a lovely area in which you will inevitably get lost. it used to be a zone of outlying summer palaces and monasteries. A couple of the palaces are still set into the walls. The remains of several others, particularly Blachernae and Bonos, rear up above the ground in unexpected ways. Inevitably, the palaces have churches associated with them. Most of the Byzantine churches around have gone or are disappearing fast.
However after the conquest, a strip of churches began to flourish along the Golden Horn. The Ecumenical Patriarchate was demoted to this area in the 16th century and after a few false starts came to rest at the current location in Fener. The Feneriot empire began – the zone of rich non-Turks who made an excellent living negotiating between the providers of foreign goods and services and the Ottomans who found it demeaning to use other languages. Other patriarchates set up Metochions in the area and the breakaway Bulgars established their exarchate here.
Kanlı Kilise, The Church of Theotokos Panaghiotissa, The Mouchliotissa, “St Mary of the Mongols”
Church of St Peter and St Mark/Atık Mustafa Paşa Camii/Kocamustafa Camii/Hasret-I Cabir
Patriarchal Church of St George/The Greek Orthodox Patriarchate
St Demetrios Xyloportas, Balat
Vlach Saray/Church of the Panaghia Paramithias/Palace of the Wallachians
Toklu Ibrahim Dede Mescidisi/Church of St Thecla
The Ayazma of Blachernae/Panayia Blachernae Ayasmasi/Church of Meryem Ana at Blachernae
St Stephen Bulgarian Orthodox Church
The Metochion of Jerusalem
The Metochion of Sinai
The Church of St Nicholas
Categories: Uncategorized | 1 Comment »
June 19th, 2014 at 5:23 pm
[…] Ayvansaray/Balat/Fener Kocamustafapaşa