Göreme: MRA-TUR-Gor018

Tokalı Kilise is composed of a complex of four interconnected churches—Old Tokalı, New Tokalı, the Lower Church, and the Side Church—together with a hermitage, all excavated in the volcanic rock of Cappadocia and dating primarily to the 10th and 11th centuries. The hermitage consists of a simple, undecorated cell provided with a hagioscope, allowing visual access towards Old Tokalı and the icon displayed in New Tokalı. The churches are particularly notable for their extensive mural decoration, which presents a wide range of biblical narratives and hagiographic themes. Executed between the tenth and eleventh centuries, the frescoes display both so-called “provincial” and “metropolitan” stylistic features, reflecting differing artistic levels and patronage within the same complex. The individual churches can also be distinguished by their iconographic programmes: Old Tokalı is dominated by a Christological cycle, whereas New Tokalı focuses largely on the lives of saints, ecclesiastical figures, and martyrs. Major restoration campaigns carried out in the 1970s involved the cleaning and stabilisation of the wall paintings, and since 2011 ongoing maintenance and conservation have been undertaken through collaboration between Turkish authorities and Italian restoration teams.

Source
Epstein, A. W., Wharton, A. J., & Schwartzbaum, P. M. (1986). Tokalı Kilise: Tenth-Century Metropolitan Art in Byzantine Cappadocia. Washington, D.C.: Dumbarton Oaks.

Further reading
Thierry, N., La Cappadoce médiévale; Rodley, L., Cave Monasteries of Byzantine Cappadocia; Ousterhout, R., Master Builders of Byzantium.