Twenty-six churches were built between 1630 and 1780 at Voskopojë, situated along the trade route from Venice to Constantinople in southeastern Albania. Voskopojë became an important religious hub in the 17th and 18th centuries. The town was a significant center of Aromanian (Macedonian-Romanian) Christianity during a time when the Ottomans ruled the Balkans. (...)
Twenty-six churches were built between 1630 and 1780 at Voskopojë, situated along the trade route from Venice to Constantinople in southeastern Albania. Voskopojë became an important religious hub in the 17th and 18th centuries. The town was a significant center of Aromanian (Macedonian-Romanian) Christianity during a time when the Ottomans ruled the Balkans. At its height, Voskopojë was home to a university and the first printing press in the region.
Now, after more than two centuries of damage caused by war, earthquakes, and erosion, only five of the churches remain. The surviving churches are named for the Archangels Michael and Gabriel, Saint Athanas, Saint Nicholas, the Prophet Elijah, and the Dormition of Notre Dame. Four of the five remaining Orthodox churches are domed basilicas designed in the post-Byzantine style typical of the Balkans. The ceiling and walls of all five are covered with frescoes depicting religious and biblical scenes in vibrant color, covering 43,000 square feet (4,000 square meters) of painted surfaces.
