A domed basilica modeled on Hagia Sophia, the spiritual centerpiece of Baron Empain's new city.
Built between 1910 and 1913 as the centerpiece of the new suburb of Heliopolis, the basilica was designed in a Byzantine style inspired by Hagia Sophia, with an eclectic mix of oriental detail. Its founder, the Belgian industrialist Baron Édouard Empain who created Heliopolis, is buried in its crypt.
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