Saint Nicholas is a favorite of sailors, fishermen, ships and sailing. As such he has become over time the patron saint of several cities maintaining harbours. In centuries of Greek folklore, Nicholas was seen as "The Lord of the Sea", often described by modern Greek scholars as a kind of Christianized version of Poseidon. In modern Greece, he is still easily among the most recognizable saints and 6 December finds many cities celebrating their patron saint. He is also the patron saint of all of Greece and particularly of the Hellenic Navy. In the Eastern Orthodox Church, Saint Nicholas's memory is celebrated
Church of St Nicholas, Melnik the Church Fathers and the vision of Peter of Alexandria. The life of church patron Saint Nicholas is also painted on the walls of the church. The frescoes also feature portraits of Antipas of Pergamum, Anthimus of Nicomedia, Gregory of Nyssa and Procopius of Scythopolis. Some of the murals have been stripped from the walls and sent to the National Archaeological Museum in Sofia, though others remain in place. A 13th-century Greek-language inscription was discovered on the interior walls of the Church of St Nicholas. In translation, it reads: "Prayer of God's slave "sebastos" Vladimir, brother of a single womb