Newsletters
A 441-year-old Greek Orthodox church in southern Türkiye is being restored to its original domed form after engineers uncovered early 20th-century photographs showing how the historic structure looked before later alterations.
Restoration and structural reinforcement work is continuing at the St. George Greek Orthodox Church in Iskenderun, Hatay, which was built in 1585 and suffered heavy damage during the devastating earthquakes centered in Kahramanmaras on Feb. 6, 2023.
The project, supported by Türkiye's Ministry of Culture and Tourism, the General Directorate of Foundations, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and foundation resources, aims to complete the work by the end of the year and reopen the church for worship.
One of the key elements of the project emerged through photographs dating back to the early 1900s, which revealed that the church originally had a dome.
Ilhan Turunc, a senior civil engineer overseeing field inspections, said restoration plans were revised around this visual evidence so that the structure could be brought back to its historically documented appearance.
"One of the most important points is that we identified the church's domed form in an original photograph taken in the 1900s. Projects were prepared accordingly, and it will be restored with a dome in line with its original form," Turunc said.
Alongside the reconstruction of the dome, a new administrative building is also planned within the courtyard to meet the church's social, cultural and administrative needs.
The restoration also involves extensive structural work designed to increase the church's resistance to earthquakes.
Following a structural analysis, engineers prepared a reinforcement project that includes widening the base sections of the walls and strengthening the foundations to improve their load-bearing capacity.
Hydraulic lime injection is being used to fill gaps within the masonry, while Textile Reinforced Mortar, commonly known as TRM, is being applied together with reinforcement plaster on the interior and exterior surfaces to strengthen the walls.
Turunc said the technical work and the new courtyard structure are planned to be completed by the end of the year.
Cem Teymur, head of the Iskenderun Greek Orthodox Church Poor Foundation, said restoration work was moving ahead rapidly and that both the interior and exterior were being strengthened in keeping with the character of the historic building.
Although the contractual construction period runs until the end of January, Teymur said the contractor expects to finish the project by the end of December.
"If all goes as planned, we are thinking of holding the New Year service here," he said.
Set as preferred source
Set as preferred source
2 min read
