The Hagia Sophia is currently a beautiful museum with stunning architecture! Its name means “holy wisdom” and it was originally built as a cathedral. Then it was converted to a mosque and is NOW a museum. Isn’t that so fascinating? Three completely different monuments in the span of many decades. Let’s look at how these conversions transpired over time!
Cathedral
The Hagia Sophia was first built as a cathedral in Constantinople (now Istanbul, Turkey) in the sixth century A.D. It contained two floors in the center of a giant nave. It had a giant dome ceiling, including smaller domes towering above. According to some of the great architects, the Hagia Sophia structure was the most formidable in the entire world. When first constructed, Constantinople was the capital of the Byzantine Empire. The state was Christian dominated and formed half of the Roman Empire and continued after the fall of Rome.
Mosque
There was a new chapter in Hagia Sophia’s life that began in 1453. That was the year that the Byzantine Empire ended, with Constantinople falling to the armies of the Ottoman Empire. Its leader then was Mehmed II. The Byzantine Empire was in decline for centuries and by the year 1453, the Hagia Sophia was in disrepair. The Ottoman Empire took note of this and decided to convert it into a mosque! Most of the changes occurred inside, with Arabic calligraphy taking center stage. The style of the Hagia Sophia influenced Ottoman architecture, specifically the construction of the Blue Mosque, built in Istanbul in the 17th century.
Finally, a Museum was Built!
In 1934, Turkey’s government turned the Hagia Sophia into a museum! The Turkish Council of Ministers stated that due “to its historical significance, the conversion of the (Hagia Sophia) mosque, a unique architectural monument of art located in Istanbul, into a museum will please the entire Eastern world and its conversion to a museum will cause humanity to gain a new institution of knowledge.”
Currently, the Hagia Sophia is a significant tourist attraction in Istanbul, Turkey and will forever be ingrained in both ancient and modern times.
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