Al Athrun Byzantine Church

The small town of Al Athrun and its Byzantine Church are located in the northern Libya about 40 kilometres east of Cyrene, 9 km east from Ras al Hillal and 29 km west of Derna. The Al Athrun Byzantine churches is better preserved than those at Ras al Hilal. The western church stands on a bluff above the Mediterranean and must have been spectacular place to worship. The walls of the Al Athrun Byzantine church are still intact and the sanctuary is strewn with marble pillars, some of which are marked with a carved crosses, snakes and other motifs. The less dramatic Eastern Church lies over the hill 150m to the east. To reach it, you skirt a steep, rocky cove with cave tombs gougned into the rock. Athrun is around 350m north of the main road, while the modern village is on the south side of the road.