The church of Agioi Apostoloi
Agioi Apostoloi
(the Church of the Holy Apostles) is located in the western part of the
historic centre of Thessaloniki, near the west wall and the now destroyed
Litaia Gate.
The church was the
catholicon
of a monastery. Surviving structures include part of the once
imposing tower-shaped portal to the southwest, and a large cistern
to the northwest, the size of which attests to the large number of monks living
there, and by extension to the monastery’s wealth. According to tradition, the church
takes its name from the popular belief that it had a twelve-domed roof
symbolizing the apostles, though the subject matter of the frescoes in the peristyle
reveals that it must initially have been dedicated to the Virgin Mary.
The catholicon
was built from 1310 to 1314 under the sponsorship of Patriarch Niphon I, as
attested by the inscription above the entrance, the monograms on the capitals
of the west facade and the ceramoplastic inscriptions on the west and
south sides. The second founder referred to is Paul, abbot and former pupil of
Niphon, who is depicted praying before the Virgin Mary above the entrance
leading from the narthex to the nave. Circa 1520-1530 the monastery was
converted into a mosque. The mosaics and frescoes were covered with plaster once
the gold background tesserae had been carefully removed. The building was restored
to Christian worship following the liberation of Thessaloniki in 1912.
The Holy Apostles
is a composite cross-in-square church with a narthex and Π shaped peristyle. This ends in two chapels to the east, and has
four low domes in the corners. The east side is dominated by the large
seven-sided sanctuary niche, flanked by smaller three-sided conches forming the
Prothesis and the Diaconicon. The exterior features finely
constructed elements typical of Paleologan architecture (numerous arches,
conches and brick half columns). Inside, refined proportions combined with a
variety of morphological elements make for a superbly balanced and
sophisticated composition.
Remains of the
interior decoration include mosaics and frescoes of exceptional historical and
artistic value. The mosaics were sponsored by Patriarch Niphon, who apparently
intended to decorate the lower sections with marble revetments. The
Pantocrator is depicted in the central dome, surrounded by ten full-length
prophets. Lower down, the figures of the four Evangelists still survive, alongside
scenes from the Dodecaorton depicted in the arches: the Nativity, the
Transfiguration, the Entry into Jerusalem, the Resurrection, the Crucifixion and
the Assumption. Together with the mosaics in the Chora and Pammakaristos
monasteries in Constantinople, those in the Holy Apostles are the latest
examples of such decoration in Byzantium, numbering among the sublimest
manifestations of Paleologan art.
Niphon was ousted
from the patriarchal throne in 1314, and thus could not complete his ambitious
plan. The decorations were supplemented with equally high quality frescoes in
the lower parts of the nave, the
narthex, the peristyle and the north chapel
dedicated to John the Baptist, bearing scenes from the Old and New Testaments,
and subjects either inspired by hymnography or of a symbolic nature. The wall
paintings date to the late 1410s, and have
been linked to the abbacy of Paul, the second founder.
Glossary (15)
catholicon:
the main church
of
a monastery.
As a rule
it
was the most imposing one, located in the center of the courtyard
portal:
large exterior gate used as the main entrance to mansions, palaces, monasteries, etc.
cistern:
reservoir for collecting water. Usually rectangular in shape and roofed with arches.
peristyle:
Space surrounding the main body of a church or the core of a centrally-planned building. In domed basilicas this was formed by the side naves and the western part of the church. In later periods peristyles surrounded enclosed cruciform cores. In the Palaeologan period peristyles were built around many of the Middle Byzantine churches in Constantinople, often serving as funerary chapels.
capital:
uppermost part of a column acting as support for the architrave, usually decorated. The three basic types of capitals are the Doric, the Ionic and the Corinthian. In Byzantine times they were adorned with carvings and used in churches, being mostly variations of the Corinthian type.
ceramoplastic decoration:
ceramic and plinth decorative elements inlayed on the exterior surfaces of church walls (bricks, meanders, crosses, diamonds, jagged strips, etc.)
narthex:
oblong reception area
extending
along
the western side
of a basilica. Originally the east portico
of the atrium,
it was later
incorporated into the
church, and served
as a waiting area for catechumens, who were not allowed to
attend the Divine
Liturgy.
cross-in-square church:
type of church where the central dome is supported by four arches covering the extremities of an equilateral cross. Lateral compartments, covered with small domes or barrel vaults, are formed at the four corners of the cross and thus the church forms a cross inscribed in a square or rectangular area. Externally the sign of the cross is also prominent because of this unique way of covering the roof.
dome:
hemispherical vault resting on a cylindrical or polygonal drum. Widely used in Christian church architecture.
prothesis:
chamber to the
north
of the
Bema
which holds the Holy Gifts
before the Great
Entrance,
and
the Communion
after
Divine
Liturgy.
diaconicon or diakonicon:
Chamber with a
niche,
usually
opening
off the
south
side
of the
church,
where offerings from the faithful, sacred vessels and
vestments
were kept.
In the
late
6th
century it
was moved to
the eastern
part
of the south
aisle,
next to the Sanctuary. Another similar room, called the
prothesis, was constructed on the east
side
of
the
north
nave.
Sanctuary
architecture as still seen today was established by the addition of these
compartments.
demi or half column:
Architectural element of semicircular cross section, corresponding to half a vertical column. Demi or half columns were usually embedded into a wall or to other architectural elements, such as the two sides of a pillar, thus forming mullions.
marble revetment:
facings of colored marble slabs that covered walls from the floor to the starting point of arches.
Dodecaorton:
the twelve major celebrations in the Orthodox Church associated with the life of Christ and the Virgin Mary, represented by a corresponding number of painted scenes, which have become the core of the iconographic programme in a church. These are: the Annunciation, the Nativity, the Presentation, the Baptism, the Transfiguration, the Resurrection of Lazarus, the Entry into Jerusalem, the Last Supper, the Crucifixion, the Resurrection, the Incredulity of Thomas, the Ascension and Pentecost or the Assumption of Mary.
chapel:
small
sized church, either
independent, belonging
to a religious foundation, or part of
a larger
church.
In Byzantium chapels were often
used for burials.
Information Texts (0)
Bibliography (6)
1. Νικονάνου Ν., Οι Άγιοι Απόστολοι Θεσσαλονίκης, Thessaloniki, 1986
2. Ξυγγόπουλος Α., Η ψηφιδωτή διακόσμησις του ναού των Αγίων Αποστόλων Θεσσαλονίκης, Thessaloniki, 1953
3. Stephan Chr, Ein byzantinisches Bildensemble. Die Mosaiken und Fresken der Apostelkirche zu, Worms , Thessaloniki, 1986
4. ΜΑΥΡΟΠΟΥΛΟΥ- ΤΣΙΟΥΜΗ Χ., Μπακιρτζής Χαράλαμπος, Ψηφιδωτά της Θεσσαλονίκης. 4ος-14ος αιώνας, Καπόν, Athens, 2012
5. Τούρτα Α., Κουρκουτίδου - Νικολαϊδου Ε., "Περίπατοι στη Βυζαντινή Θεσσαλονίκη", 1997
6. Υπουργείο Πολιτισμού και Τουρισμού | Ναός Αγίων Αποστόλων, Θεσσαλονίκη, http://odysseus.culture.gr/h/2/gh251.jsp?obj_id=1682
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