Visiting Hagia Sophia in Istanbul, Turkey

Hello friends,

Today I will talk about my visit to Hagia Sophia in Istanbul. In Greek, "Hagia Sophia" means "Holy Wisdom". Hagia Sophia was initially a Byzantine basilica, later an Ottoman mosque, and now a museum (Ayasofya Müzesi).

Famous in particular for its massive dome, it is considered the epitome of Byzantine architecture. Built between 532 and 537 on the orders of the Byzantine Emperor Justinian I, it remained the world's largest cathedral for nearly a thousand years, until Seville Cathedral was completed in 1520 (1).

Hagia Sophia

It is an impressive church of immense size. Although it lacks the stunning mosaics of other churches, like Chora for example that I have talked about in a previous post, the dark marble that was brought in from all over the empire, throughout the Mediterranean, and the bright colored dome complement each other to a dazzling outcome.

Interior views of Hagia Sophia

During Byzantine times, the empress and her court would normally retreat to the upper gallery, laid out in a horseshoe shape that enclosed the nave until the apse. The best-preserved mosaics and frescoes of the church are located here in the upper gallery.

View of the Blue Mosque from the windows of the upper gallery

Views of the upper gallery

Some of the beautiful mosaics in Hagia Sophia, that miraculously managed to escape the ravages of time, are shown in the next pictures.

Jesus between Mary and St John the Baptist

Mary and baby Jesus between Emperor John II Comnenus and Empress Irene

Jesus between Emperor Constantine IX Monomachus and Empress Zoe

Jesus between Mary and Archangel Gabriel, with emperor kneeling before Jesus

Emperor Justinian I and Emperor Constantine present Mary and Baby Jesus with a model of Hagia Sophia and a model of the city respectively

The church was transformed into a mosque when Constantinople (Istanbul) was taken by the Ottomans on the 29th of May 1453. The Ottomans gave their own mark on the church, covering the mosaics, installing stained glass windows, and putting in a mihrab pointing to Mecca. The congregation faces towards the mihrab when praying.

Stained glass windows

The Mihrab pointing to Mecca

Two huge marble lustration (ritual purification) urns were brought from Pergamon during the reign of Sultan Murad III. Stemming from the Hellenistic period, they are carved from single blocks of marble.

Lustration urn from Pergamon

Those of you who watched Inferno (2016), the blockbuster with Tom Hanks, may be familiar with the next picture. Inside the Hagia Sophia lies the tomb of Enrico Dandolo, Doge of Venice, who commanded the Sack of Constantinople in 1204.

The tomb of Enrico Dandolo, Doge of Venice

I was surprised to see marble blocks with engravings lying on the courtyard around the church.

Marble blocks in the courtyard

Sultan Mahmud I ordered in 1740 a spectacular Şadirvan (fountain for ritual ablutions) to be built in the courtyard, transforming the church into a social complex.

Fountain (Şadırvan) in the courtyard

Last but not least, I would like to post some art pictures of Hagia Sophia that I found on the internet.

Picture of Hagia Sophia from s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com

Picture of Hagia Sophia from 2.bp.blogspot.com
And that's the end of today's post. I hope you liked it. Have a good day, and speak to you soon!

References:
1.Text from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hagia_Sophia