GÖREME MUSEUM (GÖREME AÇIK HAVA MÜZESI)

The museum is in fact a valley of some thirty beautifully frescoed churches (^10th and ^11th centuries) and monasteries. The churches are named after the local people.

The Church of the Loop (Tokalı Kilise). This is the largest and most beautiful rock church in the region. It is divided into two parts, the old and the new. The frescoes in the old church (^10th c.) depict scenes from the life of Christ in a primitive style. The murals in the new church, on a superb blue background (late ^{10th/early 11th} century), are of great artistic merit. Their lanky figures are among the masterpieces of Byzantine art.

The Apple Church (Elmalı Kilise). Its name derives from a beautifully preserved fresco depicting the Archangel Gabriel holding an apple. It has four columns. The Crucifixion, the Resurrection of Lazarus and the Deisis can be distinguished. The central dome shows Christ.

Saint Barbara (Azize Barbara kilese). Carved into the rock, it has a cross-shaped floor plan and two columns. Here, painters favored red and ochre for figures and motifs in a naïve style, such as the rooster symbolizing St. Peter's denial, strange insects, sometimes interpreted as the devil, and stylized cypress trees. There is also a representation of Saint Barbara, the horsemen George and Theodore, and Mary.

The Church of the Serpent (Yılanlı Kilise). The church owes its name to the fresco depicting St. George and St. Theodore slaying the dragon. Note the painting of St. Basil and St. Thomas next to St. Onophrios with female breasts and a beard. Next door, a refectory with double apse. The seat cut into the wall was reserved for the convent's superior. The kitchen and storeroom are also adjacent.

The dark church (Karanlık Kilise). Its single window does not let in any light, which is probably why its frescoes are so well preserved. On the dome, Christ Pantocrator, on the narthex, a magnificent Ascension. The paintings depict Christ's birth and crucifixion.

At the bottom of the rock, another unnamed church, decorated with a cross pattern of five circles, unique in the region.

The Sandal Church (Çarıklı Kilise). According to popular belief, this strange name was inspired by a sandal trail marking Christ's passage, opposite the entrance.