St. Sophia Church

St. Sophia Church is a functioning Orthodox church located in the heart of the Bulgarian capital Sofia. The temple is one of the most valuable examples of early Christian architecture in southeastern Europe. An interesting fact is that this church gave its name to the entire Bulgarian city, which later became the capital of the country.

The first temple on this site was built in the 313s. A few years later, the wooden temple was replaced by the stone cathedral of St. Sophia, built with the support of Emperor Constantine I. In the new temple was held the Serdician Cathedral.

During the Turkish yoke, the church was turned into a mosque for some time, and in the XIX century the temple was used by the Ottomans as the center of the city's fire service.

Now the temple is active and from time to time archaeological investigations are carried out, as it is built on the site of the necropolis and other ancient stone tombs.