CHURCH BUILDING
Church of Saint Mary of Blachernae
Istanbul · Greek Orthodox
- Locality
- Istanbul
- Tradition
- Greek Orthodox
- Type of place
- CHURCH BUILDING
- Coordinates
- 41.03885° N, 28.94291° E
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History: Church of Saint Mary of Blachernae
The Church of Saint Mary of Blachernae, in Ayvansaray just inside Istanbul’s old walls, stands on the site of one of Byzantium’s most important sanctuaries. Empress Pulcheria began a church here beside a holy spring in 450, and Emperor Leo I added a chapel for the Virgin’s robe, brought from Palestine in 473. Its icon of the Virgin was credited with protecting the city during the sieges of 626 and 717–718 and the Rus attack of 860. The Byzantine complex was destroyed in 1434, and the small present church was built in the nineteenth century.
An interesting detail
In 843, at the end of Iconoclasm, the first Feast of Orthodoxy was celebrated here with an all-night vigil.