IMRAHOR MOSQUE (IMRAHOR CAMII)
Go there and contact
In theory, the visit can only be done with the permission of the management of St. Sophia, but always try to knock at the door. Psamathos (of the Greek psama, «sand») is the name of the village of Samatya even before the Byzantine period. Already known for its churches and monasteries, it joins the historic city when Emperor Théodose I (379-395) enlarges the city. In the th century, a large religious complex was built with the monastery of Studios (Saint-Jean-de-Stoudion) transforming the locality into a major religious centre. It is extremely rare because there are only very few buildings in this remote period and what we see today is only part of the complex, that is, the old church. The whole, at least what remains, is worthy of a natural cinema decor. It will be transformed into a mosque after the conquest of the city in 1486. The earthquake of 1908 removes its dome: no restoration was contemplated, it was abandoned.
