While working on projects to restore old churches and monasteries, I had the opportunity to visit many buildings in abandoned places in Macedonia, and quite unknown to the general public.
I will show you a few photos of the interior of the church, which delighted me with the color and detail of the painted walls. At the same time, I was saddened by some of the changes we discovered in it. Obviously, the church was damaged by moisture and time, but the people who live nearby, wanting to help, only made things worse.
They replaced the floors, which were probably made of stone slabs, with the cheapest tiles they could find. (It's not their fault, they just wanted to do the best they could) Where were those who should preserve that?
The stairs show what the floor used to look like.
And the large wooden beams were probably replaced with steel and lined with wooden paneling.
A part of the fresco was damaged. Somewhere, inappropriate attempts to restore the fresco were seen.
There is also some kind of burglary protection.
That is the big problem of beautiful churches in abandoned places. Many icons and objects are stolen and sold in other countries.
And besides, when you go inside, you can't take your eyes off the walls and all those details on them.
Some people use words, others use light to say what they feel.
Photos by 