MRA-TUR-Ihl021

The Snake church belongs to a subset of churches in Ihlara the Valley employing mural paintings of a local type, albeit with Persian and Syrian influences. The plan of the church, which was constructed in the late 9^th century, is cross-in-square. It is decorated with a mural program roughly coeval with the creation of the church, and it is from a depiction of serpents in an image of hell on the narthex that the site takes its name. The subjects of the mural cycle include uncommon figures, such as the Rabbi Gamaliel, alongside more conventional themes including the Last Judgement and the Ascension. The church also includes a small burial room, with a frescoed arcosolium.

Sources:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ihlara_valley

https://www.cappadociahistory.com/post/snake-church-ihlara

Further reading:

Inomata, K., & Kijima, M. SPACIAL COMPOSITION OF CHRISTIAN PAINTINGS IN THE CAVE CHURCHES OF IHLARA VALLEY, CAPPADOCIA.