Catedral Metropolitana Ortodoxa. Foto: Caio Pimenta/SPTuris

Ignatios Huraiki gift was sent by the Orthodox Patriarchate with the mission of founding the Orthodox Metropolitan Cathedral of São Paulo, located at the beginning of the Avenida Paulista. It was he who started the Orthodox Brotherhood of São Paulo, responsible for capturing and managing the resources needed to build the project.

Inaugurated in 1954, the project was inspired by the Church of St. Sophia, the Byzantine building in Istanbul, Turkey, and was under the responsibility of Paul Tafic Camasmie engineer.

The imposing golden central dome houses central vaults and side mezzanines painted by Joseph Trabulsi, in the 1950s, with fresco and iconostácio technique, all in marble, carved by hand, with Russian iconographer icons Krivotz. Between 2000 and 2003 the side walls and the altar of the dome were performed by Hannan Houli.

The stained glass windows and icons painted in frescoes and paintings by coating the inner walls are some of the good reasons to visit the Cathedral. The rows of columns marbled with golden ornaments in Corinthian style, the inner lining made of Carrara marble region of Italy, and 65 iconostácio icons also impact the visitor.

Catedral Metropolitana Ortodoxa. Foto: Caio Pimenta/SPTuris