Hagia Sophia: From Church to Mosque to Museum

Sitting on Aysasofya Square in Istanbul, Turkey, is the most important surviving work of Byzantine architecture--Hagia Sophia. Its Greek name means "Holy Wisdom," and its history is closely connected with the rise and fall of two great empires, the Byzantine and Ottoman. It has witnessed amazing episodes of social upheaval, religious fanaticism, and spiritual tolerance.

Roman emperor Constantine I, who accepted Christianity, transferred the administrative center of the empire from Rome to Byzantium in the early 4th century. He envisioned a great Christian church in his new capital, renamed Constantinople after him. This dream was realized by his son, Constantius II. The Megali Ecclesia, or "Great Church," was dedicated in 360. This church, however, did not last long: a mob protesting the exile of John Chrysostom, the archbishop of Constantinople, burned it down in 404. Emperor Theosidius II rebuilt the church to the original floor plan by 415. This stood for nearly 120 years, until the popular revolt against unfair taxation in 532, when the church was destroyed once again. After Emperor Justinian quashed the revolt he immediately began construction of a new, much larger and grander church.

The huge size of the new church, the blistering pace of the construction, which took less than six years, and its exotic ornamentation (rare materials were brought in from all over the known world) led to an astronomical cost. The main dome was 184 feet high, with a diameter of 100 feet; it would remain the biggest church dome in the Christian world until the 15th century. In order to build something so big, so unlike anything that stood at that time, significant theoretical knowledge was needed. Justinian hired two men who were not renowned builders; Anthemius of Tralles and Isidorus of Miletus were, however, well versed in mathematics, statics, and kinetics. Their creation, Hagia Sophia, reconciled the traditions of a longitudinal basilica and a central vaulted church. On the church's completion, Justinian was reported to have cried out, "My God, I am grateful to you for choosing me to complete this monument. I am now greater than Solomon." 

Hagia Sophia was the church of both the emperor of the Byzantine empire and the patriarch of the Byzantine Orthodox Church. The most important religious and state ceremonies were held there for more than nine centuries, until May 29, 1453, when the armies of the Ottoman empire stormed Constantinople. After they sacked the city, the Ottomans converted the church into a mosque. Initially Turks preserved the frescoes and mosaic figures of Christian saints that decorated the walls; however, in the 16th century these were completely covered by plaster, since the Islamic code forbade figural representation.

The building remained under Muslim clerical control until 1923, when it was taken over by the republican government of Turkey. Secular-minded Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, founder of modern Turkey, who wrenched the nation into existence and banished religious rule, had taken this building from the hands of the imams. Many of the original Christian decorations were uncovered and restored, and following Ataturk's orders, Hagia Sophia was converted into a museum in 1935. Now Hagia Sophia belongs to the whole world.