Drenkovska Medieval Church: Saint Demetrius Orthodox Church in Nessebar
Site at a Glance
- Rating
- 4.7
- Popularity
- High
- Country
- Bulgaria
- Primary era
- Medieval
- External website
- Open
- Eras represented
- Medieval
- Civilizations
- Byzantine
- Site type
- Religious
- Remains
- Church
History
Drenkovska medieval church, identified as Saint Demetrius, is a medieval Orthodox church in Nessebar, Bulgaria, probably built during the eleventh century in the Byzantine architectural tradition. Saint Demetrius, a Christian martyr traditionally associated with Thessaloniki, was especially venerated in Eastern Orthodox Christianity.
The church may have served as a family church. It belongs to the Bulgarian Orthodox Church, within the Sliven Diocese and the Burgas deanery, although it is no longer active. The remains were uncovered during archaeological excavations in 1968. The church is protected as a cultural monument.
Remains
Church Structure
The church was square and cross-domed, an architectural type in which a central dome is integrated with the arms of a cross in the building plan. It had three apses, semicircular or polygonal projections that commonly contain church sanctuaries. Standing immediately beside the Old Metropolis on its northern side, it survives only in ruined form. The remains include the foundations of the four pillars that supported the dome, basic parts of the structure, and a surviving section of the dome.
