Situated about 500m outside the Theodosius Walls in the vacinity of Silivri Kapa, Life-Giving Font (Zoodohos Pigi) Church contains the holy life giving spring of the same name and the tombs of many deceased Orthodox Patriarchs and major religious personages buried in the west of the court surrounding the church.
Tombstones with engravings in the Karaman Language, ie Turkish written in the Greek alphabet, this was the script used by Turkish speaking Anatolian Christians whose clergy used greek only for the Liturgy, oden the floor of the court that are also carved with the emblems of the deceased trade.
The Legend of the Fish
The carp that swim in the aghiasma pool are the subject of legend ‘a monk was frying fish when he heard that Constantinople had fallen to the Ottomans. He said he would only believe this if the fish jumped from his pan back into the pool, which they promptly did.’ It is considered good fortune to see one of the fish as they are not always visable. The water is supposed to be very good for aflictions of the eye.
According to the story Justinian was out hunting when he meet a group of women who told him that the spring had been given healing powers by the Blessed Virgin. The Emperor then ordered that a shrine be built over the pool using leftover materials from the building of Haghia Sophia and it remained in greek hands after the conquest.
Surrounding the church are two large christian graveyards one for the Orthodox and one for the Armenians.
Source: Metropolis of Zambia
