Church of Theotokos Pammakaristos

Built between 1292 and 1294, the Church of the Theotokos Pammakaristos, or Church of the all-praised Mother of God, briefly served as the headquarters of the Ecumenical Orthodox Patriarch (1455–1587). Not long after the Conquest, Mehmet the Conqueror visited here to discuss theological questions with Patriarch Gennadios. They talked in the southern side chapel known as the parecclesion, which was built to a cross-shaped plan and has a small dome, a gallery and a narthex. Though not as splendid as those in the nearby Chora Church, the paracclesion’s Byzantine-era mosaics have been beautifully restored and are well worth seeing, particularly the Pantocrator and 12 Prophets adorning the dome, and the Deesis (Christ with the Virgin and St John the Baptist) in the apse. The church was added to several times over the centuries before being converted to a mosque in 1573 and named Fethiye (Conquest) to commemorate Sultan Murat III’s victories in Georgia and Azerbaijan.