which it shares some characteristics. At the time of the Round Church's construction, Bulgaria was in direct contact with the Frankish Empire. One trait of the Round Church that is claimed by scholars to be a very recognisable Carolingian influence is the presence of a monumental westwork. Description The Round Church includes three sections: the wide atrium (or courtyard), the narthex and the cella (also naos or, due to its shape, rotunda), each serving as a premise to the other. The sections were not necessarily built at the same time, and it is generally accepted that a reconstruction of the church was carried out some time after its completion. Mavrodinov and archaeologist Karel Škorpil believe the narthex and cella comprised the first building period, while the atrium was added very shortly after that and by the same architect. The church has a total length of , including the atrium. It was mostly built of rectangular limestone blocks sparingly joined with mortar. Inside the apse, the mortar is red-coloured. The floor was covered by marble and stone tiles glued on top of red mortar in the narthex and white mortar elsewhere. Red and yellow bricks and pieces of bricks were used for the atrium, the arches, and possibly the dome; some brick pieces were used to fill spaces between the stones on the walls. Atrium The outermost part of the Round Church is its atrium, the flanked open space leading into the narthex. It is accessed by means of three gates (one on each wall), of which the entrance on the main west wall is the most elaborate and grandest in appearance. The atrium is almost square in shape and measures . A water well was constructed in the center of the courtyard; it was linked to a water conduit. The sides of the atrium are decorated by a multitude of vaults with piers in between. In total, there are fourteen vaults: four on each of the courtyard's three walls and one each where the west wall meets the sides. The atrium includes an equal number of round limestone columns each standing opposite one of the piers, apart. Narthex The rectangular narthex constitutes the middle part of the building, between the atrium and the cella, and serves as the lobby of the church. It lies directly east of the atrium, through a wide gate flanked by a couple of high circular