2/15/2007 - St Sophia - Ohrid

CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES

St Sophia - Ohrid

A large church with compound foundations and a complex history, St Sophia is one of the most impressive medieval buildings in Ohrid. The church was the center of the Ohrid archiepiscopacy, which once had jurisdiction over the regions of the Danube, Thessalonica, and Albania.

Believed to have been built or rebuilt on the grounds of an early Christian basilica between the years 1035-1056, the church is one of the best representatives of Macedonian religious architecture.

During the time when Macedonia was part of the Ottoman Empire, the church was turned into a mosque and the frescoes were covered with plaster – thus luckily preserving them for future generations.

After World War II, the church was restored and the frescoes that date from the Byzantine period (11th -14th centuries) were revealed and cleaned.

Since its builders blessed it with wonderful acoustics, the church of St Sophia and its front yard are a main site for the annual Ohrid Summer Festival.

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