Eastern Orthodox church architecture
These styles share a cluster of fundamental similarities, having been influenced by the common legacy of Byzantine architecture from the Eastern Roman Empire.
Whereas the basilica, a long aisled hall with an apse at one end, was the most common form in the West, a more compact centralised style became predominant in the East.
These churches were in origin "martyria" focused on the tombs of the saints—specifically, the martyrs who had died during the persecutions of Christians, which only fully ended with the conversion of the Emperor Constantine (AD 337).
The centralised and basilica structures were sometimes combined as in the church of Hagia Sophia in Constantinople (construction began in AD 360).
The basilican east end then allowed for the erection of an iconostasis, a screen on which icons are hung and which conceals the altar from the worshippers except at those points in the liturgy when its doors are opened.
One notable and architecturally important exception is Frank Lloyd Wright's design of Annunciation Greek Orthodox Church in Wauwatosa, Wisconsin, in the United States.
The Archdiocesan Cathedral of the Holy Trinity on New York City's Upper East Side is the largest Orthodox Christian church in the Western Hemisphere.
A church independent of local eparchy is called "stauropegial sobor" (Greek stauropegia means "mounting of the cross").
Sometimes crosses have a crescent-like shape at the bottom, which contrary to the common misconception, has no relation either to Islam, or to a Christian victory over the Muslims.
The church building is divided into three main parts: the narthex (vestibule), the nave (the temple proper) and the sanctuary (also called the altar or holy place).
[4] In most traditional Eastern Orthodox churches there are no seats or pews as in the West, but rather stacidia (A high-armed chair with arm rests high enough to be used for support while standing); these are usually found along the walls.
Directly hanging below the dome (In more traditional churches) is usually a kind of circular chandelier with depictions of the saints and apostles, called the horos, which is the same as the polyeleos mentioned above.
The two former layouts, the open square (or rarely, circular) and the cruciform have been found best suited to celebration of the Divine Liturgy.
This has found wider use across the world in more recent years with the invention of steel, as it allows for the dome to be supported without the need for massive arches and columns which were main features of the older cruciform churches.
The central one is traditionally called the Beautiful Gate or Royal Doors (either because Christ passes through them in the liturgy, or from the time of the Byzantine Empire, when the emperor would enter the main body of Hagia Sophia, the Church of Holy Wisdom, through these doors and proceed up to the altar to partake of the Eucharist).
On either side of this portal are large brass candlestands called menalia which represent the pillars of fire which went before the Hebrews into the promised land.
All Eastern Orthodox altars have a saint's relics embedded inside them, usually that of a martyr, placed at the time they are consecrated.
Atop the altar table at the center toward the back is an ornate container usually called the tabernacle where the reserved Eucharistic elements are stored for communion of the sick.
Folded within the eiliton is the antimension, which is a silken cloth imprinted with a depiction of the burial of Christ and with relics sewn into it.
On either side of the cross are liturgical fans (Greek: ripidia or hexapteryga) which represent the six-winged Seraphim.
Hanging from the cross is usually a flat iconographic depiction of Christ (corpus) which can be removed during the 50 days following Pascha (Easter).
None may enter the altar without a blessing from the priest or bishop, and personal jewelry, such as rings and earrings, is not worn by those serving there.
