St. Anthony of Padua Church

When you walk on the famous Istiklal Street in Istanbul, you will see many shopping malls, restaurants and cafes, but in the heart of this street in the Beyoglu district, the Church of St. Anthony of Padua stands out. This catholic church contains a large and long hall, and was once the largest catholic church in Istanbul during the Roman Empire and left a great and majestic monument and evidence of the depth of civilizations that the city of Istanbul witnessed. The original St. Anthony of Padua Church was built in 1725 by the local Italian community in Istanbul, but was later demolished and replaced by the current St. Anthony of Padua, which was erected on the same site alongside the neighboring buildings on Istiklal Avenue. It was developed between 1906 and 1912 in the neo-Gothic style of Venice, as it was also developed by the local Italian community in the city, mostly of Genoese and Venetian origin, who numbered 40,000 at the turn of the twentieth century. The building was designed by the Levantine architect of Istanbul (Gulio Mongeri), who also designed many other important buildings in Istanbul and Ankara such as Maçka Palas which houses Armani and Gucci Café in Nişantaşı and the Karaköy Palas Bank building on Neo-Byzantine style in (Karaköy Galata), Istanbul; As well as the first headquarters of the Bank (Türkiye İş Bankası) in Ankara.

When you enter St. Anthony of Padua Church, you will see dozens of large burning candles on the right and left sides of the church. Where people come to church with candles to help light up the church as much as possible. Where guests and visitors can sit in the back of the church and watch some of the festivities in the front sections. In the church garden, everyone listens to the music that is performed during the festivities. The statue of the Heart of Jesus Christ fascinates every visitor in the church. It is protected behind glass. There are also beautiful decorative shrubs that tell the story of Jesus’ childhood life, and on the church walls are images of Jesus, as well as a statue of His Holiness crucified 26 meters above the ground. I advise you to visit the Church of Anthony of Padua, it is one of the unforgettable landmarks!