"Explores Istanbul's 700 year-old monument of art, the Chora, concentrating on the artistic rather than the spiritual aspects of the colourful paintings which decorate its galleries. The mosaics which decorate the walls of the Chora are considered to be the most distinguished and important in the history of mosaic, while the frescoes are regarded by some art historians as 'the first glimmer of the Renaissance'."--Container.