TRABZON
Trabzon (Sumela Monastery, Hagia Sophia)
The medieval empire of Trebizond – Trabzon – had a bewitching reputation, famed for its wealth, its gold-plated palace domes and cathedrals, and its virtual independence, which lasted for nearly 2000 years. Founded as a Greek colony in the 6 th century BC, Trebizond was to reach its cultural zenith when Alexius Comnenus and his Georgian supporters took control in 1204 after the Crusader invasion of Constantinople . The only real reason to stop here is for a day trip to the famous monastery at Sumela. The Monastery of the Black Virgin at Sumela, in the depths of an uninhabited forest valley, is an enormous seven-storey structure that perches dramatically on a ledge between heaven and earth, halfway up a sheer rockface above roaring waters. According to the legend, it was built by two monks from Athens under instructions from a vision of the Virgin, but some historians claim it was more likely to have been commissioned by 4 th -century Byzantine emperors in a move to convert the pagan natives to Christianity.
In town, the classic 13 th -century Haghia Sophia is beautifully situated on a seaside bluff and houses some extremely fine Byzantine paintings. |
