Goreme Open Air Museum is a rocky settlement area that has hosted an extreme monastery life between 4th to 13th centuries D.C.. Being a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1985, Goreme Open Air Museum is also one of the most popular places to see in Cappadocia. First thought to be a Byzantine monastic settlement that housed some 20 monks, then a pilgrimage site from the 17th century, this splendid cluster of monastic Byzantine artistry with its rock-cut churches, chapels and monasteries.
Goreme Open Air Museum hosts the most important Byzantine cave churches in the world that where the monks and nuns pursued monastic life.
Travelers may see the best preserved Byzantine cave wall paintings and frescos from the Iconoclastic period through to the end of the Seljuk era, together with icons with scenes from the Old Testament and the New Testament above portraits of church fathers and saints depict the structure of the Byzantine universe.
The Elmali Church, Dark Church, Tokali Church, Yilanli Church, Saint Basil Chapel, Santa Barbara Chapel and Santa Catherine Chapel are the popular churches and chapels that are worth a visit and see at the Goreme Open Air Museum.
