The Church of the Holy Wisdom, known as Hagia Sophia (Άγια Σοφία) in Greek, Sancta Sophia in Latin, and Ayasofya or Aya Sofya in Turkish, is a former Byzantine church and former Ottoman mosque in Istanbul. Hagia Sophia is now a museum and it is still universally acknowledged as one of the great buildings of the world.

Nothing remains of the original Hagia Sophia, which was built on this site in the fourth century by Constantine the Great. The Hagia Sophia was one of several great churches he built in important cities throughout his empire. Today it is one of the greatest surviving examples of Byzantine architecture with its many mosaics and marble pillars and coverings.

The cathedral was attacked, desecrated and plundered by the Crusaders in 1204 and many of the treasures from it are now in the treasury of St. Mark’s Basilica in Venice.

Despite the desecration and plundering, Hagia Sophia remained a functioning church until May 29, 1453, when Sultan Mehmet the Conqueror entered triumphantly into the city of Constantinople. He converted Hagia Sophia into his imperial mosque. It was the principal mosque of Istanbul for almost 500 years and it became a model for many of the Ottoman mosques of Istanbul, such as the Blue Mosque.

No major structural changes were made at first; the addition of a mihrab (prayer niche), minbar (pulpit) and a wooden minaret made a mosque out of the church. Furthermore, all the faces depicted in the church’s mosaics were covered in plaster due to the Islamic prohibition of figurative imagery. Various additions were made over the centuries by successive sultans.

A UNESCO mission to Turkey in 1993 noted falling plaster, dirty marble facings, broken windows, decorative paintings damaged by moisture, and ill-maintained lead roofing. Cleaning, roofing and restoration have since been undertaken.

This photo shows the impressive scale of the columns and the central dome. (Reference www.sacred-destinations.com)

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