GREEK ORTHODOX PATRIARCHATE OF FENER
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Icon restoration workshops can be visited by appointment. The Patriarch exercises his direct authority only over the Turkish dioceses, Thrace, the Dodecanese Islands, Crete and Mount Athos, or four million Orthodox out of an estimated two hundred million. Symbolically, it retains a decision-making role in all national churches (Russia, Greece, Cyprus, etc.). It also has the power not to recognize some of them (Macedonia, Albania, Turkey). It consists of the residence of Patriarch Bartholomew, several administrative buildings, a library, a school for girls, another for boys, various workshops and the church of St. George. Only the church is accessible to the public through a side door. In the courtyard, the two-headed eagle on the façade, a symbol of Byzantium, can be seen. The interior decoration is naturally very rich, starting with the iconostasis completely covered with gold leaves. About sixty icons crown this symbolic separation of Earth and Heaven. In the centre of the temple, velvet seats can accommodate VIP guests visiting Istanbul. Presidents of foreign states cannot escape this ritual. The church also houses some relics of saints and the Flagellation column brought back from Jerusalem by Empress Helena. The most remarkable piece is undoubtedly the patriarchal throne, known as the Saint-Jean-Chrysostome throne, made of marquetry and ivory.
