Istanbul’s Unique Cast Iron Bulgarian Church.

Istanbul’s Unusual Cast Iron Bulgarian Church.

October 2020.

Having crossed off a large chunk of Istanbul’s grand highlights, Sladja and I were now firmly focusing on one of our favourite travel territories. Yes, those underrated and often unique and unusual spots that tickle the curiosity. Well, our curiosity at least.

We certainly hadn’t been seeking out another church. But as soon as we read about Bulgarian St. Stephen, we knew it couldn’t be ignored. It piqued our interest for two reasons. 1: This is a fully functioning Bulgarian Orthodox church located in the heart of Istanbul. 2: The entire structure was made of prefabricated cast iron and shipped to Turkey from Austria in the late 1890s! 

Photo courtesy of A.Savin.

Excited and just a touch bewildered, we set off one morning for a visit to Planet Earth’s only remaining prefabricated cast iron orthodox church. It was a Friday morning as we made our way through the city’s Balat District, the so-called Old Town that sits on the Golden Horn’s western shore.

Istanbul’s Unique Cast Iron Bulgarian Church.

While we had already seen plenty of photographs online, I was definitely full of anticipation to check out the church in person. Seriously, imagine the scene in late 1896 when 500 tonnes of cast iron parts arrived by sea from Vienna. That’s where they’d been made by the construction company Ph. Waagner.

It must have been an incredibly exciting time for the city’s Bulgarian community. Who, up to that point, had made do with a small wooden church at the same location. And you know what happens with wooden churches, time and time again…

In the church garden we came across a memorial to a man called Stefan Bogoridi. A high-ranking Ottoman statesman with Bulgarian roots, Bogoridi donated an old wooden house he owned so that it could be transformed into a church.

After the church burned down the Bulgarian government announced that they’d fund a brand new church on the same spot. Unfortunately, initial plans to build a stone structure swiftly fell through when they realised the ground was just too darn swampy. Thus the idea sprang forth to make it using cast iron. Genius.

Bulgarian St. Stephen Church. 

I’m loving how, for what feels like the zillionth time, my travel experiences have brought me to another Armenian architect. This time the dude in question was Hovsep Aznavur, who designed the cast iron beast and oversaw its eventual completion in 1898.

Staring at his creation that morning in the deserted church grounds, we couldn’t help but comment on its unusual look. Especially with the sun having disappeared behind a sheet of clouds, bathing the church in an almost interplanetary turquoise glow. In case you’re wondering, yes it really is an entirely cast iron structure, except for the glass windows.

Bearing in mind how perfectly silent it had been in the garden, Sladja and I got quite the surprise when we stopped at the entrance door to see that the church was packed! Inside, a service was in full swing, hence we decided to hold off on entering.

Rather, we took a full loop of the garden, which revealed a couple of noteworthy spots. First, we came across a collection of 19th century graves. According to several online articles, they hold the remains of numerous Bulgarian priests and holy men. Including none other than Hilarion of Makariopolis, a cleric who was a key part of the campaign to establish an autonomous Bulgarian church in Turkey.

Istanbul’s Unique Cast Iron Bulgarian Church.

Secondly, I spied a cute but somewhat forlorn dog dozing in what looked like a recently constructed wooden doghouse. I wonder if its creator had been tempted to make it from cast iron. Probably not.

Finally, after a spell of bench sitting, we watched as the congregation filed out of the church. Chattering excitedly, they soon dispersed, heading off in different directions. As a result, we were able to rise and tentatively saunter inside. Luckily it was a case of bingo, as we entered the perfectly empty interior of Bulgarian St. Stephen Church.

Although not that large (capacity is around the 300 mark), the church is undeniably beautiful. This is thanks to a 15 million lira renovation project that took place in 2018. A fitting present, I’d say, for what was the building’s 120th anniversary. Fascinatingly, the stone altar is the sole surviving element of the wooden church. 

Enjoying the silence, we drank in the eclectic styles, which include Neo-Byzantine, Neo-Baroque and Renaissance. The iconostasis, for example, set in glimmering gold, were made in the Russian orthodox style by an artist called Alexievich Agapkin. Sadly there is little known information about the man, despite the fact that he was chief carpenter to the Russian tsar Nicholas II.

Istanbul’s Unique Cast Iron Bulgarian Church.

Elsewhere, there are dripping chandeliers, a large wooden throne featuring a painted image of Jesus and a golden winged ox statuette said to represent Luke the Evangelist. Because, by all accounts, historic paintings often showed him accompanied by the beast.

And yet, among all these shiny bits, you can actually pick out a number of original bolts that hold the church’s steel panels together. Moreover, and I kid you not, there are just a few traces of rust here and there.

Delightfully, nobody ever did join us inside. So we hung around for a bit absorbing some history on our phones.

With just a few hours left until our online classes started for the day, it was time to make tracks.

Outside the church grounds, just across the road, we stopped briefly to photograph an exceptionally handsome building dating back to 1910.

Originally used as a convent, it later stood as homeless shelter and as Istanbul’s first Bulgarian primary school. Furthermore, for several decades a number of Bulgarian newspapers and magazines were written and printed here. Today it occasionally holds exhibits on the history of Bulgarian culture in Turkey.

Former Bulgarian Convent.

A few streets away, prior to jumping on a bus, we stopped by a store for some pastries and fridge bits. Outside, we came across four hungry kittens. So we nipped back into the store, bought a small can of cat food and fed the poor little things.

This is the first time I’ve mentioned the cats of Istanbul. The city’s amazing wild feline community and the way local people take care of them remains one of our favourite aspects of Istanbul life. So much so in fact, that I’ll be putting out a single article on the subject in the near future. Watch this space.

Like this? Take a look at my series of articles on Istanbul.

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