Jaap van 't Veen's photos with the keyword: Kirche

“De Woude” is a hamlet in the Alkmaardermeer, nowadays part of the municipality of Castricum. The village is located in the “Westwouderpolder” (commonly also called “De Woude”). The picturesque village with its wooden houses has about 160 inhabitants and can only be reached by a ferry. The Dutch Reformed church De Kemphaan is a little wooden church which was rebuilt by the villagers in 2002. The old church from the 16th century had become derelict and beyond repair, and a village house was desired by the inhabitants of “De Woude”. The church is in use for meetings, cultural activities and can be rented for weddings and parties.

The most important church on Agios Achillios island (see: www.ipernity.com/doc/294067/47395972) was the Basilica of St. Achilles. The church was founded at the end of the 10th century by Tsar Samuel of Bulgaria. Initially it was the cathedral of the empire of Samuel and later - until the middle of the 15th century - a bishop's church. In the basilica the mummified remains of Saint Achilles - a bishop from Larisa in Thessaly - were kept. These were brought to Agios Achillios after Tsar Samuel conquered Larisa in the 10th century. At the same time he commissioned craftsmen from Larisa to build the three-aisled basilica, which became the seat of the Bulgarian Patriarchate. The impressive church - (20 x 47 meters ) - was a cruciform basilica and among the ruins today one can see the famous sanctuary with three lobed windows, the pillars made of bricks and stones and a tomb on the south side. After the reoccupation of the area by the Byzantines in 1018, the church became dependent on the archdiocese of Ohrid. In 1072 it was plundered by foreign invaders, but it continued to function until at least the middle of the 15th century. Over the years the church was abandoned, deserted and finally became a ruin.