Hagia Sophia in Trebizond
Type:
Churches,
Wall paintings
Date:
Early 1250s
Location or Findspot (Modern-Day Country):
Turkey
Description:
Manuel I Grand Komnenos (r. 1238–63) built a cross-in-square church dedicated to Hagia Sophia in Trebizond, the capital city of the Empire of Trebizond. Although it has a dome, it does not resemble Hagia Sophia in Constantinople. It does, however, include spolia from Constantinople that would have connected the Komnenos family to their predecessors, Constantine and Justinian. The two largest frescoes in the church depict Pentecost and the Ascension. The latter, represented on the vault of the apse, shows Christ borne aloft by angels as his disciples to either side look on.
Relevant Textbook Chapter(s):
8
Repository and Online Resources:
• For more views, visit Dick Osseman's photography gallery.
Image Credits:
Dick Osseman, Antony Eastmond, Navid Jamali
