Arch of Galerius and Rotunda#Rotunda of Galerius
The Rotunda (Greek Ροτόντα Rotonda ) of Galerius in Thessaloniki, later referred to by the opposite St George's Chapel as Άγιος Γεώργιος, is a domed building from the Roman period, which was built in the context of Galerius. The north of the Egnatia road to the east of downtown, also called George Rotunda building received its name from travelers of the 18th and 19th centuries. In the Turkish era, it was called Eski Metropol ( Old Metropolia ). The Rotunda is a UNESCO World Heritage Site " Early Christian and Byzantine buildings in Thessaloniki".
Construction
The AD established as a sanctuary in the Kabiri or Zeus or as a mausoleum for the tetrarch Galerius in 306 Rotunda (Rotunda ), whose inner walls were originally faced with a simulated architecture of marble, has a 29.80 meters high, from a broken oculus flat dome made of brick with an inner diameter of 24.50 meters, which is negotiated at the time of construction to the world's largest brick dome. The thickness of the broken windows of six walls is 6.30 meters.
Use
The building was probably in the 4th century under Emperor Theodosius I or Constantine I in a Christian, the incorporeal ( Asomaton; ναός των Ασωμάτων ) dedicated to the church, which at times served as the Metropolitan Church, transformed and embellished with mosaics. In 1590 the Rotunda was converted into a mosque ( Hortaç Efendi Camii ) and a minaret was added to the building; Treasures and icons were brought to the small, west of Rotonda Situated George's Chapel. As Thessaloniki in 1912 came under Greek rule, the Rotunda was the church again, but in 1917 the Macedonian Museum. The minaret remained the only one in Thessaloniki. In 1978 the building was damaged by an earthquake, and has since been restored. The restoration work inside the building are ongoing. In 1999 the Rotunda was reopened as a museum- monument, although the Greek Orthodox Church still laying claim to the construction. In the eastern apse today is a consecrated altar again.
Mosaics
The mosaics of the Rotunda are the oldest wall mosaics of the Christian East. Some of them are purely ornamental ( octagons with birds and fish in the southeastern corner, intersecting circles in the west niche, like a carpet in the Südnische ). The dome mosaics on a gold background are divided into three zones: 15 obtained martyr figures in many robes (including Ananias, Romanos, Aristarchus, Kyrillos, Basiliscus, Leon, Philip, Priscus, Cosmas and Damian ) in front of seated peacocks busier simulated architecture with acanthus leaves and ornament strip, fragmentary obtained apostles and angels and triumphant Christ (not included ).