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Thessaloniki, Greece
Founded in 315 B.C., the provincial capital and sea port of Thessalonika was one of the first bases for the spread of Christianity. Among its Christian monuments are fine churches, some built on the Greek cross plan and others on the three-nave basilica plan. Constructed over a long period, from the 4th to the 15th century, they constitute a diachronic typological series, which had considerable influence in the Byzantine world. The mosaics of the rotunda, St Demetrius and St David are among the great masterpieces of early Christian art.
The city of Thessaloniki in Macedonia, Greece, for several centuries the second-most important city of the Byzantine Empire, played an important role for Christianity during the Middle Ages and was decorated by impressive buildings. Because of Thessaloniki's importance during the early Christian and Byzantine periods, the city contains several Paleochristian monuments that have significantly contributed to the development of Byzantine art and architecture throughout the Byzantine Empire and Serbia. The evolution of Imperial Byzantine architecture and the prosperity of Thessaloniki go hand in hand, especially during the first years of the Empire, when the city continued to flourish. Despite the capture of Thessaloniki by the Ottoman Empire in 1430, the Christian monuments were not destroyed, and travelers such as Paul Lucas and Abdulmejid I document the city's wealth in Christian monuments during the Ottoman control of the city.
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