Byzantine Churches in Constantinople: Their History and ArchitectureVan Millingen, Alexander
Philosophy
Byzantine Churches in Constantinople: Their History and Architecture
Van Millingen, Alexander
Architecture, Byzantine; Church architecture -- Turkey -- Istanbul; Church buildings -- Turkey -- Istanbul
The eastern dome arch is prolonged into a barrel-vaulted bema, flanked
by shallow niches leading to the prothesis and diaconicon, and beyond
the bema is the semicircular apse. Only the diaconicon now remains,
covered by a cross-groined vault, and its apse pierced by a door leading
to the hall of the Teké. The place of the prothesis has been taken by a
similar door and a small Turkish dome.
The western dome arch is filled in with a triple arcade resting on two
marble columns with finely carved cubical capitals. Above the arcade is
a group of three windows whose heads are circular on the inside, but
pointed on the outside. To the west of this arcade is an oblong passage
corresponding to the 'inner narthex' of S. Theodosia. It is in three
bays. The central long bay is barrel-vaulted; the two outer bays open
into the north and south 'aisles'; the bay to the north is covered by a
Turkish dome, while that to the south has a cross-groined vault which
seems to be original.
Beyond this to the west is the outer narthex, a fine piece of work, and,
from the character of its details, of the same period as the western
dome arcade. It is in five bays. The three central bays correspond to
the 'inner narthex'; the middle bay is covered by a low saucer dome on
pendentives, and is separated from the two side bays by columns set
against flat pilasters. The latter bays are covered by groined vaults
springing from the imposts of the capitals, which are of the Byzantine
Ionic type, with high carved imposts. They resemble the capitals in the
gallery of SS. Sergius and Bacchus, and are worthy of particular notice.
[Illustration: PLATE XXVIII.
(1) S. ANDREW IN KRISEI. OUTER NARTHEX.
(2) S. ANDREW IN KRISEI. INNER NARTHEX, LOOKING SOUTH.
_To face page 114._]
The two outer bays are separated from the central compartment of three
bays by strongly projecting pilasters. They are covered by low saucer
domes similar to the dome over the central bay, and communicate on the
east with the 'aisles.' Both outer and inner narthexes are in one story,
above which rise the windows of the western dome arch and the semi-domes
on north and south.
Turning now to the exterior, the south wall is the only outer wall which
is exposed at the ground level. It is faced with finely dressed and
polished stone, with thin joints, no tiles, and a stone-moulded cornice.
The windows are covered with four centred Turkish arches and are evident
insertions. Above the stone cornice rise the low drums of the
semi-domes. These, as well as the square base of the dome and the dome
itself, are faced with polished stone alternating with courses of three
bricks set in thick beds of mortar. The angles are plain, without
shafts, and the drums, dome base, and dome are crowned with stone
cornices moulded to a reversed ogee.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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