The St. Michael Church ( sq, Kisha e Shën Mëhillit or , also known as ''Church of the Archangels Michael and Gabriel'' is an Orthodox church in

Moscopole Moscopole or Voskopoja ( sq, Voskopojë; rup, Moscopole, with several other variants; el, Μοσχόπολις, Moschopolis) is a village in Korçë County in southeastern Albania. During the 18th century, it was the cultural and commercial ...

, modern southeastern

Albania Albania ( ; sq, Shqipëri or ), or , also or . officially the Republic of Albania ( sq, Republika e Shqipërisë), is a country in Southeastern Europe. It is located on the Adriatic and Ionian Seas within the Mediterranean Sea and shares ...

History

The church was erected in 1722 and is one out of five remaining churches in the once prosperous Aromanian metropolis of Moscopole. During the prohibition of religion in Albania, in 1948, it was turned to a

cultural monument A national heritage site is a heritage site having a value that has been registered by a governmental agency as being of national importance to the cultural heritage or history of that country. Usually such sites are listed in a heritage regist ...

of the state. In 1996 the church became a target of vandalism by Muslim fanatics with 23 paintings of Saints being heavily damaged.Robert Elsie. Peyfuss, Max Demeter:
Die Druckerei von Moschopolis, 1731-1769. Buchdruck
p. 1

Architecture

It is a

basilica In Ancient Roman architecture, a basilica is a large public building with multiple functions, typically built alongside the town's forum. The basilica was in the Latin West equivalent to a stoa in the Greek East. The building gave its name ...

-type church with a main

nave The nave () is the central part of a church, stretching from the (normally western) main entrance or rear wall, to the transepts, or in a church without transepts, to the chancel. When a church contains side aisles, as in a basilica-type ...

and two lateral

aisle An aisle is, in general, a space for walking with rows of non-walking spaces on both sides. Aisles with seating on both sides can be seen in airplanes, certain types of buildings, such as churches, cathedrals, synagogues, meeting halls, parl ...

s. The dimensions are 33m x 15m x 9m. There are two main pillars. Two lines of columns divide the central nave from the two lateral aisles and all three aisles have the same height as the naos. The columns are connected among one another on both directions. Each one of the three aisles has a

cupola In architecture, a cupola () is a relatively small, most often dome-like, tall structure on top of a building. Often used to provide a lookout or to admit light and air, it usually crowns a larger roof or dome. The word derives, via Italian, from ...

, and each one of the three cupolas is different. On the eastern side the apse is outside of the cupola and some pillars cover it. The

narthex The narthex is an architectural element typical of early Christian and Byzantine basilicas and churches consisting of the entrance or lobby area, located at the west end of the nave, opposite the church's main altar. Traditionally the narthex ...

is on the western side, and its construction is similar to the remaining part of the naos. The narthex has stone columns with arches and cupolas. The cloister is absent as it has been destroyed, but there are still signs of the original one.

References

Cultural Monuments of Albania Eastern Orthodox church buildings in Albania Churches in Moscopole Churches completed in 1722 Churches in Korçë County 1722 establishments in the Ottoman Empire {{Albania-struct-stub