Church of the Dormition


After being badly bombed during WWII, it's a wonder anything survived in this stately 1820s Orthodox church which made the discovery, in 1983, of a signed icon painted by El Greco even more extraordinary. The work dates from the 1560s, before the artist left his native Crete to become a leading light of the Spanish Renaissance. It's now proudly displayed in the porch, to the right of the main door.

Inside, nearly every surface of the triple-naved church is decorated – from the ceiling frescoes to the marble-effect columns – and there's an extraordinary carved and gilded bishop's throne and pulpit.


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