The inspiration behind Santa Claus, the tomb of Saint Nicholas has been discovered by archaeologists in an ancient church in Turkey. The archaeologists uncovered the remains of the church which was submerged by rising sea levels in the Mediterranean during the Middle Ages.
The holy figure lived?between 270 and 343 AD. He was famous for inheriting money that he gave to the poor. While there is not much that has been uncovered about his life, there is one story, in particular, that was extremely generous.?
The?Christian bishop had?once gifted three poor sisters a bag of coins each, having discretely thrown the gold into their bedrooms to avoid any embarrassment.?
Other than that, the?tomb is located in St Nicholas Church in Demre, a town in the Antalya district of southern Turkey. It was covered by rising sea levels centuries ago ¨C with another church built on top to protect it.
The other church that was built over the original foundation?became a place of worship for Orthodox Christians between the 5th and 12th Centuries. It was also designated as a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1982.
By around 2017, the original church was discovered when?electronic surveys revealed gaps between the floor and the ground.?Experts are very carefully making sure to uncover the ancient site by removing the Byzantine church¡¯s flooring.
Osman Eravsar, who is the head of the provincial cultural heritage preservation board in Antalya, told Demir?ren News Agency:?"The first church was submerged with the rise of the Mediterranean Sea, and some centuries later, a new church was built above. Now we have reached the remains of the first church and the floor on which Saint Nicholas stepped.?The tiling of the floor of the first church, on which Saint Nicholas walked, has been unearthed."
Saint Nicholas?was born in the village of Patara to wealthy parents who died in an epidemic and left their son a large fortune. Being a Christian, he followed the teachings of Jesus?and sold off all worldly possessions, and gave to the poor.
Even though there is no documentation, there are some stories that talk about him giving away a lot of possessions to the poor.?He did become bishop of Myra in the 4th century but was imprisoned shortly after by the Roman emperor Diocletian.?
For the latest trending stories, follow us on?Telegram.?