Church of St. Michael (Berat)

The St. Michael's Church (Albanian: Kisha e Shën Mëhillit) is a medieval Byzantine church outside the Kalaja district on a hilltop of the city of Berat of Southern Albania. As part of the Historic Centres of Berat and Gjirokastër UNESCO World Heritage Site, the church was possibly constructed in the fourteenth century and is dedicated to the archangel Michael.^[3][4]

St. Michael's Church Albanian: Kisha e Shën Mëhillit
St. Michael's Church of Berat
Location	Berat, Berat County  Albania
Coordinates	40°42′17″N 19°56′48″E
Built	fourteenth century[1]
Cultural Monument of Albania
Designated	1948[2]

The church is relative small in size and was constructed on the south of the Kalaja district on a steep rock. It is a cruciform chapel instilled without any internal support, with a dome on drum and narthex on the west section.^[5] It was built on a cruciform plan with a dome on the top. The walls are characterized by combination of rows of red brick with stone. Inside the temple, the remains of painting walls retains only few trace. A collection of frescoes and icons have been preserved nowadays. In contrast to other churches in Berat, here observed proportions developed a higher level and a tendency to perfecting architectural forms.^{[citation needed]}

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See also

• Albanian Orthodox Church
• Architecture of Albania
• Byzantine churches in Albania
• Culture of Albania
• Tourist attractions in Berat

References

1. Robert Elsie (19 March 2010). Historical Dictionary of Albania. Scarecrow Press, 2010. p. 46. ISBN 9780810873803.
2. "Religious buildings with the "Culture Monument" status". Republic of Albania National Committee for Cult. Archived from the original on July 6, 2011. Retrieved October 28, 2010.
3. "Kisha e Shën Mëhillit shek. XIV" (in Albanian). Archived from the original on 8 December 2014. Retrieved 6 November 2010.
4. UNESCO. "Historic Centres of Berat and Gjirokastra". whc.unesco.org.
5. UNESCO. "Proposition d'inscription soumise par l'Albanie La ville musée de Gjirokastra" (PDF). whc.unesco.org. p. 350.