The Byzantine imperial church of St Nicholas Ragkava is situated in the north-east side of the Acropolis, between Prytaniou Street and Epiharmou Street, in the area of Anaphiotika nearby Lysikrates monument. It is one of the most beautiful and popular historical churches of the Plaka neighbourhood in Athens.
According to historical sources, the name Ragkavas belongs to an important family from Constantinople (Istanbul) and Athens, the most well-known member of which was the Byzantine emperor Michael Ragkave the 1st (811-813).
The church was built by the emperor’s grandson, Paul Xeropotaminos, who was later officially canonized (declared a saint). Written documents, relating to the foundation of the church, have not been preserved.
The church played an important role in medieval Athens. Originally, it was a private chapel but eventually, it became a parish church and it remains so till the present day.
Experts claim that the church dates back to the 11th century (1040-1050) due to stylistic features similar to those existing in many churches of this period.
After the 11th century the church underwent considerable changes and new extensions were added to it. It is one of the most significant Byzantine monu-ments in the city of Athens.
However, the church building took its present form after the maintenance work done to it in 1979-80, during which several original constituent parts came to light such as the dome, roof and the northern side. St Nicholas church is a four pillar cruciform domed edifice.
On the north-eastern exterior wall of the building, the Middle Eastern Byz-antine arrangement of frontages and margins is visible. Big vertical slabs are placed parallel to one another on the lower part of the wall but without forming a cross. (See on the outside of the church under the first double window on the east side).
The stonework of walls follows the pattern of stonemasonry coating. That is to say, four-sided hewn stones were used, which were surrounded by bricks. This style is obvious in the sanctuary of the church.
There are some decorative Kufa arrangements of bricks, (similar to the one on the left). These were decorative features with which the Ko-ran was written for the first time in the town of Kufa located in Iraq today. Quite a lot of ancient building materials have also been incorporated, something that was commonplace in the 11th century.
A particular decorative feature, for example, is a double toothed line formed by cornicing which surrounds the outer part of the church. The small eight-cornered dome belongs to the Athenian style, typical of that period.
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