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Selimiye Mosque, Nicosia
Selimiye Mosque ( ''Témenos Selimigié''; ), historically known as Cathedral of Saint Sophia or Ayasofya Mosque (), is a former Christian cathedral converted into a mosque, located in North Nicosia. It has historically been the main mosque on the island of Cyprus. The Selimiye Mosque is housed in the largest and oldest surviving Gothic church in Cyprus (interior dimensions: 66 X 21 m) possibly constructed on the site of an earlier Byzantine church. In total, the mosque has a capacity to hold 2500 worshipers with available for worship. It is the largest surviving historical building in Nicosia, and according to sources, it "may have been the largest church built in the Eastern Mediterranean in the millennium between the rise of Islam and the late Ottoman period". It was the coronation church of the kings of Cyprus. History Earlier Byzantine church The name of the cathedral derives from ''Hagia Sophia'', meaning "Holy Wisdom" in Greek. According to Kevork K. Keshishian, the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Shacolas Tower
The Shacolas Tower or Ledras Tower (Greek: Πύργος Σιακόλα) is a highrise building in Nicosia, Cyprus. It was completed in 1959. It was built by Costas Manglis and was formerly known as the Manglis Tower, which housed the offices of the General Engineering and Hellenic Mining Company. It is located in the old town of Nicosia Nicosia, also known as Lefkosia and Lefkoşa, is the capital and largest city of Cyprus. It is the southeasternmost of all EU member states' capital cities. Nicosia has been continuously inhabited for over 5,500 years and has been the capi ... and it was the tallest building in Cyprus until 1978. The first 5 floors are H&M department stores and the 6th floor used to be a cafeteria offering a panoramic view of the old city. The 11th floor is an observatory and museum overlooking the whole capital. There are telescopes, binoculars and a recorded feature on the history of the capital. Museum and observatory This museum combines a modern m ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Greek Language
Greek (, ; , ) is an Indo-European languages, Indo-European language, constituting an independent Hellenic languages, Hellenic branch within the Indo-European language family. It is native to Greece, Cyprus, Italy (in Calabria and Salento), southern Albania, and other regions of the Balkans, Caucasus, the Black Sea coast, Asia Minor, and the Eastern Mediterranean. It has the list of languages by first written accounts, longest documented history of any Indo-European language, spanning at least 3,400 years of written records. Its writing system is the Greek alphabet, which has been used for approximately 2,800 years; previously, Greek was recorded in writing systems such as Linear B and the Cypriot syllabary. The Greek language holds a very important place in the history of the Western world. Beginning with the epics of Homer, ancient Greek literature includes many works of lasting importance in the European canon. Greek is also the language in which many of the foundational texts ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pope Clement IV
Pope Clement IV (; 23 November 1190 – 29 November 1268), born Gui Foucois (; or ') and also known as Guy le Gros ( French for "Guy the Fat"; ), was bishop of Le Puy (1257–1260), archbishop of Narbonne (1259–1261), cardinal of Sabina (1261–1265), and head of the Catholic Church from 5 February 1265 until his death. His election as pope occurred at a conclave held at Perugia that lasted four months while cardinals argued over whether to call in Charles I of Anjou, the youngest brother of Louis IX of France, to carry on the papal war against the Hohenstaufens. Pope Clement was a patron of Thomas Aquinas and of Roger Bacon, encouraging Bacon in the writing of his '' Opus Majus'', which included important treatises on optics and the scientific method. Life before election Clement was born in Saint-Gilles-du-Gard in the County of Toulouse, to a successful lawyer, Pierre Foucois, and his wife Marguerite Ruffi. At the age of nineteen, he enrolled as a soldier to fight the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Trials Of The Knights Templar
The downfall of the Knights Templar was initiated by King Philip IV of France. Philip, who was heavily in debt due to his lavish policies and military endeavours, saw the Templars as a way of alleviating his financial hardship and at the same time eliminating a powerful rival. In addition, the Templars were difficult to control by secular authorities due to their international networks and their special rights, which placed them directly under the Church, which Philip perceived as a threat. At the same time, Philip had been embroiled in a bitter conflict with Pope Pope Boniface VIII, Boniface VIII over the question of the division of power between the Church and the Crown. After Boniface's death and the election of the French Pope Pope Clement V, Clement V, Philip saw his opportunity to further extend his control over ecclesiastical affairs. On Friday 13 October 1307, Philip had numerous Templars arrested in Kingdom of France, France, including the Grand Master Jacques de Molay. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Famagusta
Famagusta, also known by several other names, is a city located on the eastern coast of Cyprus. It is located east of the capital, Nicosia, and possesses the deepest harbour of the island. During the Middle Ages (especially under the maritime republics of Genoa and Venice), Famagusta was the island's most important port city and a gateway to trade with the ports of the Levant, from where the Silk Road merchants carried their goods to Western Europe. Names The city was known as Arsinoe or Arsinoë (, ''Arsinóē'') in antiquity, after Ptolemy II of Egypt's sister and wife Arsinoe II. By the 3rd century, the city appears as Ammochostos ( or , ''Ammókhōstos'', "Hidden in Sand") in the '' Stadiasmus Maris Magni''. This name is still used in modern Greek with the pronunciation , while it developed into Latin , French , Italian , and English during the medieval period. Its informal modern Turkish name Mağusa () came from the same source. On 25 December 1975, the formal ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Fresco
Fresco ( or frescoes) is a technique of mural painting executed upon freshly laid ("wet") lime plaster. Water is used as the vehicle for the dry-powder pigment to merge with the plaster, and with the setting of the plaster, the painting becomes an integral part of the wall. The word ''fresco'' () is derived from the Italian adjective ''fresco'' meaning "fresh", and may thus be contrasted with fresco-secco or secco mural painting techniques, which are applied to dried plaster, to supplement painting in fresco. The fresco technique has been employed since antiquity and is closely associated with Italian Renaissance painting. The word ''fresco'' is commonly and inaccurately used in English to refer to any wall painting regardless of the plaster technology or binding medium. This, in part, contributes to a misconception that the most geographically and temporally common wall painting technology was the painting into wet lime plaster. Even in apparently '' buon fresco'' technology ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Façade
A façade or facade (; ) is generally the front part or exterior of a building. It is a loanword from the French language, French (), which means "frontage" or "face". In architecture, the façade of a building is often the most important aspect from a design standpoint, as it sets the tone for the rest of the building. From the engineering perspective, the façade is also of great importance due to its impact on Efficient energy use, energy efficiency. For historical façades, many local zoning regulations or other laws greatly restrict or even forbid their alteration. Etymology The word is a loanword from the French , which in turn comes from the Italian language, Italian , from meaning 'face', ultimately from post-classical Latin . The earliest usage recorded by the ''Oxford English Dictionary'' is 1656. Façades added to earlier buildings It was quite common in the Georgian architecture, Georgian period for existing houses in English towns to be given a fashionable new f ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Chevet
In architecture, an apse (: apses; from Latin , 'arch, vault'; from Ancient Greek , , 'arch'; sometimes written apsis; : apsides) is a semicircular recess covered with a hemispherical vault or semi-dome, also known as an '' exedra''. In Byzantine, Romanesque architecture, Romanesque, and Gothic architecture, Gothic Architecture of cathedrals and great churches, Christian church architecture, church (including cathedral and abbey) architecture Architecture is the art and technique of designing and building, as distinguished from the skills associated with construction. It is both the process and the product of sketching, conceiving, planning, designing, and construction, constructi ..., the term is applied to a semi-circular or polygonal termination of the main building at the liturgical east and west, liturgical east end (where the altar is), regardless of the shape of the roof, which may be flat, sloping, domed, or hemispherical. Smaller apses are found elsewhere, espec ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Narthex
The narthex is an architectural element typical of Early Christian art and architecture, early Christian and Byzantine architecture, Byzantine basilicas and Church architecture, churches consisting of the entrance or Vestibule (architecture), vestibule, located at the west end of the nave, opposite the church's main altar. Traditionally the narthex was a part of the church building, but was not considered part of the church proper. In early Christian churches the narthex was often divided into two distinct parts: an esonarthex (inner narthex) between the west wall and the body of the church proper, separated from the nave and aisles by a wall, arcade (architecture), arcade, colonnade, screen, or rail, and an external closed space, the exonarthex (outer narthex), a court in front of the church façade delimited on all sides by a colonnade as in the first Old St. Peter's Basilica, St. Peter's Basilica in Rome or in the Basilica of Sant'Ambrogio in Milan. The exonarthex may have bee ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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 building, the strict definition of the term "nave" is restricted to the central aisle. In a broader, more colloquial sense, the nave includes all areas available for the lay worshippers, including the side-aisles and transepts.Cram, Ralph Adams Nave The Catholic Encyclopedia. Vol. 10. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1911. Accessed 13 July 2018 Either way, the nave is distinct from the area reserved for the choir and clergy. Description The nave extends from the entry—which may have a separate vestibule (the narthex)—to the chancel and may be flanked by lower side-aisles separated from the nave by an arcade. If the aisles are high and of a width comparable to the central nave, the structure is sometimes said to have three nave ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Seventh Crusade
The Seventh Crusade (1248–1254) was the first of the two Crusades led by Louis IX of France. Also known as the Crusade of Louis IX to the Holy Land, it aimed to reclaim the Holy Land by attacking Egypt, the main seat of Muslim power in the Near East. The Crusade was conducted in response to setbacks in the Kingdom of Jerusalem, beginning with the loss of the Holy City in 1244, and was preached by Pope Innocent IV, Innocent IV in conjunction with a crusade against Frederick II, crusade against emperor Frederick II, Baltic rebellions and Mongol incursions. After initial success, the crusade ended in defeat, with most of the army – including the king – captured by the Muslims. Following his release, Louis stayed in the Holy Land for four years, doing what he could towards the re-establishment of the kingdom. The struggle between the papacy and Holy Roman Empire paralyzed Europe, with few answering Louis' calls for help following his capture and ransoming. The one answer was th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Louis IX Of France
Louis IX (25 April 1214 – 25 August 1270), also known as Saint Louis, was King of France from 1226 until his death in 1270. He is widely recognized as the most distinguished of the Direct Capetians. Following the death of his father, Louis VIII, he was Coronation of the French monarch, crowned in Reims at the age of 12. His mother, Blanche of Castile, effectively ruled the kingdom as regent until he came of age, and continued to serve as his trusted adviser until her death. During his formative years, Blanche successfully confronted rebellious vassals and championed the Capetian cause in the Albigensian Crusade, which had been ongoing for the past two decades. As an adult, Louis IX grappled with persistent conflicts involving some of the most influential nobles in his kingdom, including Hugh X of Lusignan and Peter I of Brittany. Concurrently, England's Henry III of England, Henry III sought to reclaim the Angevin Empire, Angevin continental holdings, only to be decisively def ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
