Küçuk Aya Sofya ve Sümela Manastırı

Trabzon has a number of tourist attractions, some of them dating back to the times of the ancient empires that once existed in the region. The Hagia Sophia (Turkish: Ayasofya Müzesi), a stunning Byzantine church, is probably the town's most important tourist attraction. Not far off in the Trabzon province is the Sümela Monastery.
The Sümela Monastery (Greek: Παναγία Σουμελά, Turkish: Sümela Manastırı) stands at the foot of a steep cliff facing the Altındere valley in the region of Maçka in Trabzon Province.It is a major tourist attraction located in the Altındere National Park. It lies at an altitude of about 1200 metres overlooking much of the alpine scenery below.
The monastery was founded in the year AD 386. Legend states that they found an icon of the Virgin Mary in a cave on the mountain and decided to remain in order to establish the monastery. During its long history, the monastery has fallen into ruin several times and been restored by successive Emperors. It reached its present form in the 13th century. At that time, it was granted an income from imperial funds. Following the conquest by the Ottoman Sultan Mehmed II in 1461, it was granted protection by order of the Sultan and given rights and privileges which were renewed by following Sultans. Monks and travellers continued to journey there throughout the years and the monastery was extremely popular up until the 19th century. The Monastery was seized for a time by the Russians during the occupation of Trabzon between 1916 - 1918. It was finally abandoned in 1923, following the population exchanges between Greece and Turkey.Today its main purpose is as a tourist attraction. Its place overlooking the forests and streams below make it extremely popular for its aesthetic attraction as well as for its cultural and religious interests.
Although he frescoes of the Sümela Monastery are seriously damaged and have largely been moved from their original settings, the frescoes on the inner and outer walls of the Rock Church and the walls of the adjacent chapel are still extraordinary. The main subject of the frescoes are biblical scenes telling the story of Christ and the Virgin Mary (Meryem Ana).
The Turkish government is currently undertaking necessary restoration works to the site.

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• Küçuk
• Aya
• Sofya
• Haghia
• Sophia
• Sümela
• Manastırı
• monastery
• Trabzon
• Byzantine
• frescoes
• Meryem
• Ana