The earliest church of St. Nicholas was built in the 6th century AD, supposedly over St. Nicholas´ tomb. Later it was rebuilt, the present church is from the 9th century (probably rebuilt after Arab attacks). It was further rebuilt in 1042 under the patronage of Constantine X and a monastery was added at that time or shortly after. Czar Alexander II bought the building in 1863 and began to have it restored, but the renovation was not completed. Excavations and restorations were done during the 1960´s and continue today from the early 1990´s. Wall painting restorations were carried out from 2000-2005. The church´s floor is of beautiful opus sectile and cosmati, types of luxury marble mosaic floor tilings, and there are some remains of wall paintings.
The church and its close environs were registered as a 1st-degree archaeological site in 1982, and also placed on the tentative list of World Heritage Sites by the Turkish Ministry of Culture. It is ranked among specialists as the third most important Byzantine structure present in Anatolia.
(Location: Demre)

Uploaded by slavica on 5/4/2009, viewed 1085 times.