Sumela Monastery

The Sumela Monastery is built on rock cliffs of the Altmdere Valley in Turkey. At an altitude of about 1200 m, it is a major tourist attraction of the Altindere National Park. The monastery was founded in 386 AD during the reign of emperor Theodosius I (375-395 AD). Legend has it that two priests undertook this creation after discovering a miraculous icon of the Virgin Mary in a cave on the mountain. During its long history, the monastery fell into ruins several times and was restored several times by various emperors. It reached its present form in the 13th century after gaining prominence during the reign of Alexios III.
The monastery was abandoned after World War I and the start of the population exchanges between Greece and Turkey that forced some two million ethnic Greeks and Turks to leave their long established communities in Turkey or Greece and return to their ethnic homelands. It remained empty for decades before being partially restored and returned to life as a museum.