14/2/2008 - SÜMELA MONASTERY - TURKEY / AMASYA

SÜMELA MONASTERY

The Byzantine Monastery of Sumela is located hinterland in a breathtaking site, hanging on the face of a steep rock 1,200m / 4,000 ft high. Dedicated to the Virgin Mary, this sanctuary, where Emperor Alexius Komnenus III was crowned in 1340, is composed of a rock-cut church and a chapel both decorated with frescoes, and conventual buildings, some of them added in the 17th century.