11 icons, many Bibles and various materials were taken under protection from the ruins of the Antakya Greek Orthodox Church in Hatay, which was destroyed in the Kahramanmaraş-centered earthquakes.
Hatay
The teams of the Disaster Area Excavation Directorate, which was established by the Ministry of Culture and Tourism to save valuable cultural assets in the wreckage of registered buildings after the Kahramanmaraş-centered earthquake on February 6, started a rescue work in the church on Hürriyet Street.
During the reign of Bilad Al Damascus in Egypt, the delegation, who worked meticulously in the church, which was first made of wood with the permission of Ibrahim Pasha, son of Mohammed Ali, in 1833, was destroyed by great damage in the earthquake of 1872, and also experienced the same result from the earthquakes on February 6, reached 11 icons in the area that turned into a rubble heap.
The team headed by Associate Professor Muhammet Arslan, Head of the Department of Art History at the Faculty of Arts and Sciences of Kafkas University, also unearthed a large number of Bibles, including manuscripts, and some liturgical materials (things and objects with symbolic meaning in rituals) from the church's wreckage.
The artifacts, which were documented, classified and inventoried, were taken under protection in the temporary excavation house.
"The Church is an important registered asset of ours"
Disaster Area Excavation Director Muhammet Arslan told Anadolu Agency (AA) that the Greek Orthodox Church of Antakya was severely damaged in the earthquake and became a wreck.
Referring to the importance of the church, Arslan said, "The church is an important registration asset. There were many liturgical works, especially icons. We removed these materials safely with our teammates. After we do the inventory work, we will return the works to the church's foundation representatives."
Arslan emphasized that they worked meticulously during the recovery of historical artifacts from the rubble.
Pointing out that the artifacts unearthed from the wreckage are valuable for the church, Arslan said:
"There are important scenes among the excavated icons. We rescued the icons with important scenes such as the ascension of the Virgin Mary, the entrance to Jerusalem, the baptism of Jesus Christ, the Pantocrator (a scene where Jesus Christ is depicted) from the rubble. In addition, we unearthed oil lamps, other liturgical materials, and many religious books, especially the manuscript Bible. After the necessary cleaning and documentation work in our temporary excavation house warehouse, these will be delivered to the relevant people through the Hatay Archeology Museum."