Istanbul Church Reopens as Mosque With Medieval Mosaics and Frescoes Intact

After a four-year wait, the Chora Church has reopened as the Kariye Mosque with its treasured works of Christian art open to public view (Jennifer Hattam Istanbul Church Reopens as Mosque With Medieval Mosaics and Frescoes Intact Hyperallergic 14.07.2024)

When the 11th-century Chora Church was ordered to be reconverted into a mosque in 2020, many feared for the fate of its richly decorated interior, which features some of the world’s finest Late Byzantine-era mosaics and frescoes. After a tense four-year wait while the building was closed for restoration, it reopened on May 6 as the Kariye Mosque with its treasured works of Christian art [ ] again open to public view.

Except for a handful of pieces in the small central nave that has been set aside for the men’s prayer hall, off-limits to non-Muslims and women.