All Saints' Church, Himarë

About

All Saints' Church (Albanian: Kisha e Gjithshenjtorëve, Greek: Ναός Αγιών Πάντων) is an Albanian Orthodox church and Cultural Monument of Albania in Himarë, Vlorë County, Albania. It was built around 1775 at the behest of Kosmos of Aetolia and contains an iconostasis. During the communist period of Albania's history, the church was used as a warehouse for oranges.

Description: All Saints' Church style is similar to that of churches in Central and Western Macedonia during the 19th century. The walls are made up of rubble stone and plaster. It has a single tiled roof, a timber-roofed basilica with a gallery and three aisles which are divided by two colonnades each consisting of four plastered columns. The central aisle's roof is four-pitched, taller than the other roofs and rests on the colonnades. The other two aisles have lean-to roofs. The approximate dimensions of the church are 15.4 metres by 30.7 metres with an internal height of 9.5 metres. There are different levels within the church due to it being built on sloping ground.

According to legend, Kosmos of Aetolia commissioned the church around 1775. It was built at the entrance to Himare Castle. He reportedly...