The project of installing a fire protection system at the Basilica of Panagia Achiropoiitos, in Thessaloniki, begins, with the aim of protecting the monument and the safety of the public who visit it.

The Church of Panagia Achiropoiitou, in Thessaloniki, which owes its name to the icon of the Virgin Deomena, which according to tradition was not painted by human hands, is an exquisite piece of architecture, a proto-Byzantine three-aisled, wooden-roofed basilica, Hellenistic type, with a narthex and a portico, of the end of the 5th century, making it unique.

The fire protection study includes the installation of security lighting and a fire alarm system, automatic fire detection system, portable fire extinguishers, installation of a permanent water supply fire extinguishing network with the placement of an above-ground tank within the surrounding area, connected to the city network.

In the same area, it is planned to place a fire fighting complex that will supply two fire nests, fire extinguishers, two on the ground floor and one in the women’s quarters.

The temple is approximately 52m long, 32m wide. and a height of 14m. in the external perimeter walls and 22m. on top of the roof of the central aisle. Two colonnades, with 12 columns each, divide the Temple into three aisles. Adjacent to the southern side of the Church is an addition which is considered the baptistery of the Basilica, in one view and, in another, the original rectory of the church. The monument underwent architectural interventions in the 7th century and then in the 14th-15th centuries, as well as restoration work, after the earthquakes of 1978.

The Minister of Culture, Lina Mendoni, said: “The city of Thessaloniki has Byzantine monuments of great importance. The Basilica of Achiropoiitos is included in the monuments of the Byzantine period – together with the Rotunda, Hagia Sophia, the Panagia of Chalkea, the churches of Agia Catherine, Agios Nikolaos the Orphan and Prophet Ilias, as well as the North, North-West and West Walls of the city – in which restoration, maintenance and protection works are in progress, as well as upgrading the services provided to their visitors. The Ministry of Culture ensures the protection and promotion of the monumental stock of Thessaloniki during its long history. The Byzantine period in Thessaloniki has outstanding examples of architecture and monumental art. In 1988, UNESCO included in the World Heritage List the early Christian and Byzantine monuments of Thessaloniki, among them the Church of Panagia Achiropoiitos, which with this name appears on a chrysobull of Michael IX. Its mosaics, decoration and portable icons constitute a treasury of Byzantine Art. In Achiropoiitos, today, projects are being carried out to improve access to the monument, shape and enhance its surrounding area, and energy upgrading and fire safety measures. The implementation of the fire protection study aims to protect the monument in the event of a fire, as well as the safety of visitors and believers. The inclusion of the measures, which are deemed necessary, was done in a way that does not affect the aesthetics and the structural system of the monument”.

The intervention is part of the overall project of upgrading the energy of fire protection, improving accessibility and highlighting the immediate surroundings of the monument, with a budget of 500,000 euros, from the resources of the Recovery Fund.