Throughout its 1500 year saga, the Hagia Sophia has experienced many great architectural and artistic triumphs as well as periods of crisis and disaster.

Originally constructed in 537 AD in Constantinople by the emperor Justinian as a cathedral to Eastern Orthodox Christianity, the Hagia Sophia became the architectural crown jewel of the Byzantine empire and the largest cathedral in the world for centuries.

But its stability, both physically and culturally, was not without setbacks: over a 900 year period, earthquakes and fires destroyed the original domes and interior features. The church was pillaged and damaged after Roman Catholic crusaders invaded and sacked the city in the early 1200s. Though eventually recaptured by the Byzantines who had originally consecrated it, poor funding for repairs left the church in a state of dilapidation and many of its relics were moved to other churches and museums around the world for safekeeping.

In 1453, Constantinople was conquered by the Ottomans and the Hagia Sophia was converted into the empire’s holiest mosque. Many Christian relics were removed and mosaics covered with plaster. Minarets and other Muslim structures were added including a school, a soup kitchen and an ablution (ritual wash) area. Sultans who ruled the Ottoman empire for the next 500 years were responsible for the significant repairs and renovations to the building’s original structure.

The photo below shows the patchwork of styles and materials that now form this grand building. Converted into a museum in 1935, it was nonetheless in danger of collapse until a major restoration and conservation project was undertaken in 2002 … that still continues today.

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