Editing Myra (section)

== Church of St. Nicholas at Myra ==

[[File:Grab Nikolaus.jpg|thumb|left|The original tomb of St. Nicholas at the [[basilica]] in Myra.]]
{{main|Saint Nicholas}}{{main|St. Nicholas Church, Demre}}

The earliest church of St. Nicholas at Myra was built at the time of [[Eastern Roman Empire|Eastern Roman (Byzantine) Empire]] in the 6th century. The present-day church was constructed mainly from the 8th century onward; an [[Eastern Orthodoxy|Eastern Orthodox Church]]{{fact|date=April 2024}} monastery was added in the second half of the 11th century.

In 1863, [[Emperor of All Russia|Emperor]] [[Alexander II of Russia]] purchased the building and began restoration, but the work was never completed. In 1923 the church was abandoned when the city's Christian inhabitants were forced to leave for Greece by the [[Population exchange between Greece and Turkey]]. In 1963 the eastern and southern sides of the church were excavated. In 1968 the former ''confessio'' ([[tomb]]) of St. Nicholas was roofed over.

The floor of the church is made of ''[[opus sectile]]'', a [[mosaic]] of coloured marble, and there are some remains of [[fresco]]es on the walls. A [[marble]] [[sarcophagus]] had been reused to bury the Saint; but his bones were stolen in 1087 by merchants from [[Bari]], and are now held in that city, in the [[Basilica di San Nicola (Bari)|Basilica of Saint Nicholas]].

The church is currently undergoing restoration. In 2007 the Turkish Ministry of Culture gave permission for the [[Divine Liturgy]] to be celebrated in the church for the first time in centuries. On 6 December 2011 Metropolitan Chrysostomos, who has the title of Myra, accordingly officiated.<ref>romfea.gr</ref>