Saint Sophia Cathedral, London

This was the third church to bear this name, the previous two (at Finsbury Square and at 82 London Wall) having been outgrown by the population of the Orthodox community, which had been swelled by settlers from the Greek diaspora and visitors who came through the busy shipping routes that converged on London. St Sophia was commissioned by a committee presided over by Emmanuel Mavrocordato (1830–1909), assisted by Constantinos A lonidis, Sophoclis Constantinidis, Petros P. Rodocanachi, Paraskevas Sechiaris and Demetrius Stefanovich Schilizzi (1839–1893) and the lawyer and traveller, Edwin Freshfield. The cost of £50,000 was raised in three years by the Greek community, including prosperous…

St Sophia is a Byzantine Revival design by architect John Oldrid Scott. Scott was responsible for many significant British churches, and was subsequently commissioned by Ralli to build St Stephen's Greek Orthodox Chapel in West Norwood Cemetery in 1873. From the outside the Cathedral appears relatively modest, only hinting at its style through the domed roof and arched windows. Inside it is elaborately decorated with polychromatic marble. The iconostasis (screen of icons) was painted by Ludwig Thiersch, who had studied religious painting in Athens. He had suggested that the walls not be decorated with frescos, because of the damp climate in London. Instead, the trustees commissioned…