The founder of the church was Theodore Metochites.

The church that exists today was constructed after two centuries, the walls were reverted with superb mosaics and a pareclession was added and decorated with beautiful frescoes. Maria Doukaina, mother-in-law of Alexius Comnenos I, founded the church between 1077-1081.

There are no remains left from the original church and the first form of the present structure dates back to 11C. The Chora Church Museum is open every day from 9 am to 4:30 pm except Wednesday. The importance of the church does not rest with the building itself, but the frescoes and the mosaics, which are superb and reflect the magnificent heritage of Byzantine Art. The most interesting Byzantine church, after Hagia Sophia, in Istanbul. In 1935 the building was converted into a museum by the executive order of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, the founder of modern Turkey. It was converted to a mosque following the Ottoman conquest of the city, by the order of Sultan Mehmed the Conqueror in 1453 so that the young Sultan could fulfill a divine premonition by the Holy Prophet Mohammad himself. Mankind would have to wait for over a millennium before being able to build a cathedral that would surpass the gigantic size of Haghia Sophia. The domed construction of the sanctuary is an architectural innovation and was so richly and artistically decorated that Justinian proclaimed, ‘Solomon, I have outdone thee!’. The ‘Shrine of Holy Wisdom’ the marvellous Byzantine basilica built in the 6th Century marks the true beginning of the golden age of Justinianus, the conqueror of Africa and Italy, who achieved lasting fame through the complete revision of all Roman law, resulting in what is known today as the Corpus Juris Civilis.

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