The article names no architect. The text says the church was built in the 4th century on the site of earlier churches, and also that it is believed to date from the reign of Justinian I, from 527 to 565. The infobox gives a founding range of the 4th to 6th century.
It is a cross basilica with three altars, two towers and one tower-cupola, 154 feet (47 m) long and 66 feet (20 m) wide. The infobox gives the style as Roman and Byzantine. The floor is covered with early Christian mosaics, and tombs under and near the church carry some frescoes. The article states no structural materials.
The 12th-century frescoes were destroyed. The church became a mosque in the 16th century and gained minarets, and two 19th-century earthquakes destroyed one, after which it was abandoned. Restoration as a basilica ran from about 1926 to 1935. It is an active Bulgarian Orthodox church.
Comments