Hagia Sophia

Aya Sophia (Hagia Sophia Cathedral) is one of the most visited sights in Istanbul. It attracts tourists with its unique architecture, magnificent mosaics and special energy, so strong that you seem to be immersed in a different reality, where different historical eras coexist simultaneously. Arabic script neighbors here with the symbols of Christianity, and they, without mixing in any way, mutually complement each other.

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Video: Aya Sofia

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Highlights

The monumental Aya Sofia building, located in the historic center of Istanbul’s Sultanahmet district, is surrounded by four slender minarets, making it particularly recognizable. For 1500 years of its existence, first a patriarchal Orthodox cathedral, then a mosque, and now a museum, representing an outstanding monument of Byzantine architecture, has preserved its luxurious decoration, and this despite the fact that its extraordinary fate was rich not only in solemn, but also tragic pages.

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The Hagia Sophia Cathedral of Constantinople, as it is also known, is the embodiment of the “Golden Age” of the Byzantine Empire. Often also referred to as the Eighth Wonder of the World, it carries great architectural and historical value and was inscribed as a UNESCO World Cultural Heritage Site in 1985. With its regular rectangular shape, Aya Sofia resembles a classical basilica whose dome, supported at the corners by huge 24-meter columns, seems to float in the air. The walls of the former temple remember numerous rebuilds and repairs, and how many people hid and prayed behind them in the hours of calamity, no one can name.

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Currently, discussions are gaining popularity on social media about turning this symbol of Byzantium and Istanbul’s calling card back into a mosque. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan initially opposed the idea, but in a March 2019 interview with TRT TV, he expressed a different stance, noting that if tourists of all faiths can enter the nearby Sultanahmet Mosque, better known as the Blue Mosque, for free, then Aya Sofia can be treated in a similar manner. It’s hard to say when or if this will happen at all, but if it does, non-Muslim men, let alone women, are unlikely to be able to be in the temple during services. For now, everything remains as it is, and anyone can visit the Cathedral of St. Sophia – the Wisdom of God (this is another name for the attraction) regardless of gender and religion.

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History of Aya Sofia

At first, on the place where now stands Aya Sofia (in ancient times there was a market square Augusteon) was a temple of the pagan goddess Artemis, which stood until 360. Then the Roman Emperor Constantine I built here a small church of St. Sophia. True, on the version of Socrates Scholasticus, the Byzantium Christian historian of the Greek origin, the first temple in honor of this saint has been erected in an epoch of his successor Constantius II. With it did not agree Russian historian of XIX century Nikodim Pavlovich Kondakov, believed that built the church still Constantine, and Constantius only expanded the construction. Up to 380 the temple owned the followers of Arianism, one of the earliest currents in Christianity, after which the cathedral passed into the hands of the Nikenians – at the command of Emperor Theodosius I. The monarch personally inducted Gregory the Theologian, who later became Archbishop of Constantinople, into the temple.

In 404, a popular uprising broke out in Byzantium, during which the temple burned down. A new church was built in its place, but soon, in 415, and it was destroyed by fire. In the same year, by order of Emperor Theodosius II built a new basilica, but the evil fate and it was not spared: she also burned. It happened during the largest revolt in the history of Byzantium and Constantinople, known as the Nika revolt (translated from Greek as “Victory” – this was the slogan used by the rebels). At that time Byzantium was ruled by Emperor Justinian I. Already in 40 days after the fire he ordered to erect a new cathedral on the place of the former temple. According to legend, the plan for the construction of a majestic religious building brought the monarch appeared in a dream angel.

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The ruler saw the future temple as a symbol of the greatness of the empire and a true decoration of the capital, so he decided to expand the area under it. For this purpose, the surrounding plots of land were bought from their owners, and the buildings on them were demolished. The works, which involved 10 thousand workers, were led by Isidore of Miletus and Anfimius of Tral, the best architects of the time, who had previously shown themselves in the construction of the Church of St. Sergius and Bacchus. Marble for the future Justinian basilica was brought from Numidia, Prokonnis, Hierapolis and Karist, and it was the best building material. The construction also used architectural elements of such ancient buildings as Ephesus and the Temple of the Sun in Rome – respectively, eight columns of green marble and eight columns of porphyry. To decorate the cathedral and give it splendor and luxury, the ruler of Constantinople spared no expense in gold, silver, and ivory.

Huge funds were spent on the construction – three annual income of the Byzantine Empire. And the cathedral of Sacred Sofia has turned out under a match of such expenses: it was so magnificent, that the popular rumor attributed direct participation in its construction to supernatural forces. There is a legend that Justinian allegedly wanted to cover the walls of the cathedral, starting from the floor and ending with the vaults, covered with gold, but he was stopped by astrologers who predicted that “at the end of the ages” will reign very poor kings and in the desire to seize all the riches of the temple, they “build it to the ground”. The Emperor, for whom his own glory was by no means an empty sound, such a prospect depressed, and he decided not too luxurious with the interior decoration of the temple. And yet the Cathedral of St. Sophia, as noted by a contemporary of the construction of Procopius of Caesarea, “represented a wonderful sight – for those who looked at it, it seemed exceptional, for those who heard about it – absolutely incredible”. According to his description, the temple, as if leaning over Constantinople, so above it was so outstanding that the city from it was visible as in the palm of his hand.”

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Erection of the cathedral was completed in record time for those times, just five years, and December 27, 537, on Christmas Day, the grand opening took place. The consecration rite was performed by the patriarch of the Church of Constantinople Mina. The legend says that Justinian, stepping over the threshold of St. Sophia, exclaimed: “Solomon, I have surpassed you!” referring to the construction of the Jerusalem Temple by the third Jewish king and ruler of the united kingdom of Israel.

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Contemporaries called the cathedral great, and this definition was fully true. Precious utensils were used for the services performed by 525 ministers of worship, of whom 60 were priests and 100 were deacons. Under Emperor Heraclius I, the staff of the cathedral increased to 600 people.

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A few years after the completion of construction, a strong earthquake struck, destroying part of the building. Its eastern side, that under the altar, the ciborium, the ambo and the holy refectory were damaged. From chronography of the Byzantium monk Theophanes the Confessor it is known, that in weak seismic stability of Sacred Sofia were guilty mechanics who have not established support from below, but thus have left spans between columns which supported a dome, and as a result columns have not stood. In 989 there was another powerful earthquake, from which the temple also suffered: this time the most severe destruction was subjected to the dome. The building had to be supported by buttresses, which affected its appearance. The dome was restored by the Armenian architect Trdat, the author of the project of the Cathedral of the Holy Virgin in Ani, making it even higher than it was.

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In 1054, St. Sophia Cathedral entered the history of world Christianity as the place where the separation of the churches into Orthodox and Catholic was initiated. It happened on July 16, when during the divine service Constantinople patriarch Michael Kerullarius received an excommunication letter, which was handed by the legate of Pope Leo IX, Cardinal Humbert Silva-Kandidsky, after which on July 20 the papal legates were anathematized by the patriarch. The last in history of Sacred Sofia Christian divine service has taken place at night on May 28, 1453. Byzantium was going through a period of its agony, and this service was, in fact, a requiem for the dying empire. During the liturgy, the last emperor Constantine XI Dragash and his entourage said goodbye to the patriarch. And the very next day, the temple was captured by the Turks.

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According to the description of the Greek historian Dukas, author of “Byzantine History”, the invaders behaved like real barbarians. Armed with swords, they broke down the locked gates of the cathedral and, breaking in, stole jewelry from the icons, and the images themselves were chopped to pieces. In Hagia Sophia at that moment were praying, which the Turks brutally killed. Legend has it that so much blood was spilled that its level was even marked in the form of a red stripe on one of the columns.

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On May 30, Sultan Mehmed II of the Ottoman Empire entered the main temple of the defeated Byzantine Empire. The Turks did not destroy the building itself. Having added four minarets to it, they turned it into a mosque, naming it Aya Sofia. In the second half of the XVI century to the former cathedral added buttresses – vertical structures, very heavy and rough, designed to strengthen the walls. These constructions noticeably changed its appearance. As for the interior decoration, the frescoes and mosaics were plastered over – apparently to prevent them from reminding of its Orthodox past. Restoration of the Aya Sofia Mosque was not carried out until the middle of the XIX century, until Sultan Abdul-Mejid I ordered it. The decision was dictated by the fact that the building was in danger of collapse. The architects Giuseppe and Gaspare Fossati were put in charge of the work. The restoration began in 1847 and lasted two years.

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After the defeat of the Ottoman Empire in World War I, the monarchy was abolished on November 2, 1922 and the Republic of Turkey was proclaimed. It was not until 1935 that the new authorities decided the fate of this unique historical, religious and architectural landmark. The head of the government Kemal Ataturk signed a decree according to which the mosque became a museum. In order for it to fully comply with this status, layers of plaster from the mosaics and frescoes were peeled off. In 2006, a separate room was equipped in the building so that the museum complex staff could perform Muslim religious rituals. In 2018, the Turkish Constitutional Court received a submission from a private organization specializing in historical monuments to return the Aya Sofia Museum to the status of a mosque. However, the judges rejected it as inadmissible.

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Architecture and interior decoration

The main part of the cathedral, whose rectangular base measures 70×75 m, is covered by a 31-meter dome in the form of a hemisphere with a diameter from north to south of 30 m and from east to west of 31 m, consisting of forty radial arches. The drum has the same number of windows, the peculiarity of which is that they are located at the minimum distance from each other. This gives the impression of the dome floating in the air.

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The main dome is additionally supported by arches. They are remarkable in that each is equipped with three rows of windows. Note that originally the cathedral had 214 windows. Subsequently, when it was reconstructed and added additional buildings, the number of the latter decreased to 181. The building has smaller domes, they seem to “descend” from the main roof. Their support on the vaults allows for an even distribution of the load. In addition, the southern and northern facades are further strengthened by towers that take the brunt of the arches.

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Aya Sofia is divided into three rooms (naves). The wide one is located in the central part, and the narrow ones are on the edges, in a complex forming a cross. Inside the former cathedral is decorated with 104 columns, distributed on its two tiers: 64 are on the upper (it is a gallery), 40 – respectively, on the lower (it is so called – the lower floor). In Byzantine times the first level was intended for the clergy and the emperor. Simple believers were also allowed there, but only men. Women had to stay upstairs during the services.

In front of the museum Aya Sofia spreads a spacious courtyard, in the center of which is a fountain. The former Orthodox cathedral has nine entrances, of which the most famous is the central one, the so-called Imperial Gate. Built, according to legend, from the remains of Noah’s Ark, they are located on the western side of the building. They were opened only during major holidays, and then only for patriarchs and rulers of Byzantium. On other occasions, dignitaries and their entourage entered the temple through a small southwestern door. It is called Horologion and remains in operation to this day: it is through this door that many tourists enter the building of the Ayia Sophia Museum. After passing through this passage, the first thing you find yourself in the annex, which is called the Warriors’ Lobby. It used to be used for guards and weapons storage. There is also a ramp that leads to the upper level with three open galleries (choirs). The western one was intended for the empress and her retinue, the northern one could be used by women of the middle class, and the southern one was used by the patriarchs as a meeting room. After the vestibule is an outer annex, which is a bright and very spacious gallery leading to the room under the dome, the height of which is 55 meters.

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The walls of Aya Sofia deserve a special mention. There is an assumption that the layers of marble with which they were faced, pre-sawed into thin layers and then opened like a book. There was no iconostasis as such in the hall. Instead of it 12 columns made of silver and decorated in the upper part with gold fragments were installed. The latter were intended for the installation of portraits of the holy fathers. In the manufacture of the throne used, in addition to gold and silver, such precious materials as diamonds, electrum, smaragdas, jachonts and others – a total of about 72 names.

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When the Orthodox cathedral was transformed into a Muslim mosque, it built a carved marble minbar, which served as a pulpit for the mullah, from which the minister of religion addressed the faithful. What is interesting, it was not installed on the place of the former altar, but shifted to the southeast, so that the worshipers were facing Mecca. The dome was decorated with surahs from the Koran, the mihrab and the sultan’s bed also appeared in the interior. Candles, traditional for Orthodox churches, were replaced by chandeliers made of lamps. In the right part of the lower floor there is a room with a carved gold lattice, allocated for the library of Sultan Mahmud I. But it is currently empty: the books collected by the ruler were distributed to other museums.

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Mosaics of Aya Sofia

The first mosaic in the Cathedral of Hagia Sophia appeared in 867, which included a depiction of a platform with a throne and the adjoining ledge of the building (apse). Here it is possible to see the Most Holy Virgin with baby Jesus on knees and archangel Gabriel from one side (the image of the second archangel has not remained). Creators of this mosaic image used smalt, having applied inclusions of gold of different sizes that has allowed to create effect of intensive shimmering. The date of appearance of this image is unknown. There is a version that it was part of the original mosaic cycle, created by a monk-artist at the time of Emperor Justinian. This master is considered a saint, as during the persecution of the iconoclasts mutilated his hands. However, the original image created by him has not survived to our days in its entirety. The mosaic, which can be seen by tourists, was later recreated by St. Photius, who called it “a sign of the victory of Orthodoxy over heresy.”

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The end of the IX century was marked for the Cathedral of St. Sophia by the appearance of a mosaic with the face of Jesus Christ. The God-Man was depicted sitting on a throne and holding the Gospel in his hands. Symbolically, the Holy Scripture is open on the page with the words: “Peace be unto you. I am the light of the world.” There is a portrait-mosaic in the museum, dedicated to Emperor Alexander, before coming to the throne in 870, who was co-emperor with his father Basil the Macedonian and was brother to Leo VI the Wise.

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The vaulted room in the southwest corner above the south vestibule contains images also belonging to the first mosaic cycle. For example, a group of icons (dexus) adorning the entrance wall. However, the obligatory element of such a group – the figure of John the Baptist – has not survived. Another 12 figures were placed on the vault, but only three have survived to our days: the first martyr Stephen, the prophet Ezekiel and Emperor Constantine. In the lunettes of side walls half-figures of 12 apostles of Christ and four patriarchs of Constantinople of the period of iconoclasm were preserved. These mosaics, according to many experts, have a low artistic level, which suggests that they were created by non-professional masters among the monks.

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In about 878 the northern tympanum of St. Sophia was decorated with mosaics depicting 16 prophets of the Old Testament and 14 saints. Preserved, again, not all, but only mosaics of 6 saints, including John Chrysostom and Ignatius the Theotokos. The level of these works is also assessed as low, but draws attention to the expressiveness of the images. The figures in them are squat and broad, and the features of the faces are depicted in a large scale.

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Interesting facts

  • Hagia Sophia Cathedral was the largest Orthodox church in the world before it was converted into a Muslim mosque.
  • To the right of the altar is a colored stone marker, which symbolizes the center of the universe. It was in this place that Byzantine emperors were crowned.
  • On one of the slabs of Aya Sofia is a handprint, which, according to legend, belongs to Mehmed II himself, the conqueror of Constantinople. According to legend, the Ottoman ruler rode into the temple on a horse, which, suddenly frightened of something, stood on a pike. Sultan, in order not to fall out of the saddle, had to lean on the palm of his hand against the wall.
  • Another unusual attraction of the former cathedral is Gli the cat. This living mascot, in which, as it is believed, embodied the spirit of Justinian, likes to spend time near the imperial place, thus seemingly confirming this statement. Gli is a real celebrity, even Barack Obama was photographed with him when he was president of the United States.
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  • One of the mysteries of the temple is the “weeping” column consecrated by Gregory the Wonderworker, which is also called the “column of wishes”. There is a legend that it can cure diseases and fulfill cherished wishes. According to legend, Emperor Justinian was the first to discover these properties of the column. He had a severe headache, and when he leaned against the column, he felt relief. According to another legend, the reason for the column’s “tearfulness” is that the mortar used in the construction of the column was filled with earth from the holy city of Mecca, water from the Zamzam spring and saliva of the Prophet Mohammed himself. The hole on the surface of the column has its own history of appearance. The legend associated with it says that it is a trace of the hand of St. Elijah, who was here during the construction and tried to correct its curvature.
  • There is another mystical attraction in Aya Sofia – the “cold” window. It is located in the southern part of the former cathedral, on the second floor. From this ordinary, at first glance, the aperture constantly blows cold air – even in the intense heat. The reasons for this phenomenon has not yet been established.
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  • In the sources of XV-XVII centuries preserved evidence that under the cathedral is a dungeon, which stores huge cisterns of water and special tunnels for its supply to the surface. Scans have shown that there is indeed a huge space under the building. Tunnels leading to the top of the building were also found. However, the cisterns could not be found, although in 1945 researchers descended into the dungeon, but their attempts to pump out the water from there were not successful: its level did not decrease even after several hours of work.
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  • To the west of the temple is an ancient baptistery, used for the sacrament of baptism. The room had a font made of a single piece of marble – it was the largest in Constantinople. Now the font is taken out of the room and is located in the portal, and the baptistery itself, once used as a storage of candle oil, later converted into a mausoleum. The remains of two Turkish sultans, Ibrahim I and Mustafa I, are buried there.

  • Near the museum, you can see rooms of six- and octagonal shapes. They are single-chambered and are the tombs of Turkish sultans Selim II, Murad III, Mehmed III and their families. Access to the mausoleums is free, but before entering it is necessary to remove shoes, and women must cover their hair with a headscarf. Inside the building, on the other hand, is the tomb of Dandolo. This commander led the Crusader troops when they stormed Constantinople. True, his tomb is empty.
  • One of the niches of Hagia Sophia, if you lean your ear, makes a noise. There is a belief that during the Ottoman assault in this niche hid a priest, and the noise heard to this day – it is nothing more than coming to us a prayer for salvation.
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  • In Greek and Turkish sources, which describe the capture of Constantinople by the Ottoman Empire in 1453, it is indicated that on the eve of the fall of the capital of Byzantium, the Cathedral of Hagia Sophia illuminated a strange and very bright glow that rushed through the windows of the dome directly into the sky. It is believed that in this way the guardian angel of the temple left his post.

Visitors

The Ayia Sophia Museum is open from 9:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. in spring, summer and fall (April 15 to November 1) and from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. in winter (November 1 to April 15). The day off is Monday and the first days of Ramadan, on the Eid al-Adha holiday there is a shortened day (from 13:00). Tickets can be purchased at the ticket office and terminals located to the left of the entrance until 18:00 and 16:00 respectively, as well as online at the museum’s official website. The entrance fee in 2019 is 60 Turkish Liras, children under 8 years old go free.

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In order not to be late for the tour, it is recommended to arrive at the museum 15-20 minutes before it opens.

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Tourists who wish to explore Aya Sofia individually and without a guide can use the services of an audio guide, working in 12 languages, including Russian. But before you get an earpiece, you will have to leave a deposit – it can be a passport or money.

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Many travelers, given that Aya Sofia is in a Muslim country and was itself a mosque, worry about the dress code. In fact, there are no special requirements for the style of dress of visitors.

How to get there

To get to Hagia Sophia Cathedral, you can take the subway, which you can transfer to as soon as you arrive at Ataturk Airport. Finding the subway by following the signs leading directly from the airport building is easy. Take the M1 line to Zeytinburnu station. After that, you will have to walk a little over a kilometer, heading east along Seyit Nizam Street. At the T1 Kabataş-Bağcılar line stop, take a streetcar to the Sultanahmet stop. Then you will have to walk another 300 meters and you will be right at Aya Sofia.

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