Religious Architecture

The Church of Our Lady tower (Brugge, Belgium) - the second tallest brickwork tower in the world

Mosque minaret, Amman, Jordan

Al Azhar mosque in Cairo

A Byzantine cross by the sea marks the border between Mount Athos in northern Greece and the 21st century. Prayers have been offered in its monasteries every day, with no interruption, for more than a thousand years. It was set aside by ancient emperors to be the spiritual capital of Orthodox Christianity and has probably changed less over the centuries than any other inhabited place on the planet.

monasteries

There's nothing remarkable about the clock tower in the Vatopedi monastery, except for one thing:
there is a six hour time difference, as the monks on Mount Athos keep Byzantine time.
The day begins at sunset, not at midnight. The monks measured time this way during
the days of the Byzantine Empire, which fell in 1453.

Mount Athos's monasteries get more applicants than it can handle: it's harder to get into than Harvard.
A man comes as a novice. He's free to leave if he doesn't like it, and the monks can tell him to leave
if they don't like him.

The monasteries are a place of silence. It's only broken by the occasional tapping on a chiseled
piece of chestnut. It is a call to prayer and started being used before there were bells.

One of the 20 monasteries on the Mount Athos peninsula.

St. Peter's Basilica, Vatican City

Samarkand

Vienna, Austria

Ãîðäîñòüþ Ïåòåðãîôà ÿâëÿåòñÿ ñîáîð ñâÿòûõ àïîñòîëîâ Ïåòðà è Ïàâëà. Îí áûë ïîñòðîåí ê äâóõâåêîâîìó þáèëåþ «ñòîëèöû ôîíòàíîâ» ïî ïðîåêòó àðõèòåêòîðà Í.Â.Ñóëòàíîâà â òðàäèöèÿõ ìîñêîâñêîãî êóëüòîâîãî çîä÷åñòâà è òîðæåñòâåííî îñâÿùåí 12 èþíÿ 1905 ãîäà â ïðèñóòñòâèè öàðñêîé ñåìüè.

Cathedral by Wave

Íîâîñàðàòîâêà (Ëåí. îáëàñòü)

Íîâîäåâè÷èé ìîíàñòûðü â Ìîñêâå

Îäèí èç èçâåñòíåéøèõ ñèìâîëîâ Ìþíõåíà — ãëàâíûé ãîðîäñêîé ñîáîð Ôðàóåíêèðõå. Íà åãî ìåñòå â XIII–XIV âåêàõ ñòîÿëà äðóãàÿ öåðêîâü, íî óæå â 1468 ãîäó áûë çàëîæåí ïåðâûé êàìåíü íîâîé öåðêâè, êîòîðàÿ ñòàëà áû ôàìèëüíûì ñêëåïîì äèíàñòèè Âèòòåëüñáàõîâ. Îãðîìíûé êèðïè÷íûé ñîáîð äëèíîé 109 è øèðèíîé 40 ìåòðîâ áûë äîâîëüíî áûñòðî ïîñòðîåí ïîä ðóêîâîäñòâîì ìàñòåðà Éîðãà ôîí Õàëüñïàõà, õîòÿ îáå ñòîìåòðîâûå áàøíè áûëè çàâåðøåíû òîëüêî â 1525 ãîäó. Îòëè÷èòåëüíîé èõ ÷åðòîé ÿâëÿþòñÿ îðèãèíàëüíûå êóïîëà â âèäå ëóêîâèö.

Çíàìåíñêàÿ öåðêîâü (Äóáðîâèöû)

Öåðêîâü Ïîêðîâà â Ôèëÿõ/The Church of the Intercession at Fili