Omorfokklisia ( el, Ομορφοκκλησιά, "beautiful church") is a 12th-century

Greek Orthodox The term Greek Orthodox Church (Greek language, Greek: Ἑλληνορθόδοξη Ἐκκλησία, ''Ellinorthódoxi Ekklisía'', ) has two meanings. The broader meaning designates "the Eastern Orthodox Church, entire body of Orthodox (Chalced ...

church in

Galatsi Galatsi ( el, Γαλάτσι, ''Galátsi'' ), called in Katharevousa Galatsion ( el, Γαλάτσιον, ''Galátsion''), is a northern suburb of Athens, Greece, and a municipality of the Attica region. The municipality has an area of 4.026 ...

, a northeastern suburb of

Athens Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates ...

Greece Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders with ...

. This church dedicated to

Saint George Saint George (Greek: Γεώργιος (Geórgios), Latin: Georgius, Arabic: القديس جرجس; died 23 April 303), also George of Lydda, was a Christian who is venerated as a saint in Christianity. According to tradition he was a soldier ...

is considered one of the landmarks of the area.

History

It is estimated that the church was built in the second half of the 12th century over an earlier Christian temple, which in turn had been built over an earlier pagan temple. Around the church, Greek antiquities have been found as well as ancient human remains and it is probable that an ancient cemetery existed nearby.

Art

The church was decorated with wall paintings in the last quarter of the 13th century. Because of the stunning beauty of the icons and wall paintings housed within the church, it has been labeled as a "museum of hagiography". Some of the scenery found on the walls, are images from the life of St. George and from the

Old Testament The Old Testament (often abbreviated OT) is the first division of the Christian biblical canon, which is based primarily upon the 24 books of the Hebrew Bible or Tanakh, a collection of ancient religious Hebrew writings by the Israelites. The ...

, while on the ceiling, the image of

Jesus Christ Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label=Hebrew/Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other names and titles), was a first-century Jewish preacher and religious ...

is found. Other images of prophets, angels and other saints can be found throughout.

References

External links

* Churches in Attica Byzantine architecture in Attica Eastern Orthodox church buildings in Greece 12th-century Eastern Orthodox church buildings Galatsi {{Greece-EO-church-stub