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Favorite thing: Turkish: Ayasofya, Latin: Sancta Sophia or Sancta Sapientia) is a former patriarchal basilica, later a mosque, now a museum, in Istanbul, Turkey. Famous in particular for its massive dome, it is considered the epitome of Byzantine architecture. It was the largest cathedral in the world for nearly a thousand years, until the completion of the Medieval Seville Cathedral in 1520.
The current building was originally constructed as a church between 532 and 537 AD on the orders of the Byzantine Emperor Justinian, and was in fact the third Church of the Holy Wisdom to occupy the site (the previous two had both been destroyed by riots). It was designed by two architects, Isidore of Miletus and Anthemius of Tralles. The Church contained a large collection of holy relics and featured, among other things, a 50 foot (15 m) silver iconostasis. It was the patriarchal church of the Patriarch of Constantinople and the religious focal point of the Eastern Orthodox Church for nearly 1000 years.
In 1453, Constantinople was conquered by the Ottoman Turks and Sultan Mehmed II ordered the building to be converted into a mosque. The bells, altar, iconostasis, and sacrificial vessels were removed, and many of the mosaics were eventually plastered over. The Islamic features - such as the mihrab, the minbar, and the four minarets outside - were added over the course of its history under the Ottomans. It remained as a mosque until 1935, when it was converted into a museum by the secular Republic of Turkey.
For almost 500 years the principal mosque of Istanbul, Hagia Sophia served as a model for many of the Ottoman mosques such as the Sultan Ahmed Mosque (Blue Mosque of Istanbul), the Şehzade Mosque, the Süleymaniye Mosque, and the Rüstem Pasha Mosque.
Although it is sometimes referred to as Saint Sophia (Greek for wisdom), the Greek name in full is Church of the Holy Wisdom of God Ναός τῆς Ἁγίας τοῦ Θεοῦ Σοφίας - and it was dedicated to the Holy Wisdom of God rather than a specific saint named Sophia
Updated Apr 1, 2008
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Favorite thing: Since 1935 Ayasofya is a museum. Many Orthodox mosaics of Ix-X centuries were cleaned from plasters. Now you can enjoy it for TYL 10 (EUR 5). In the same time inside there are Muslim symbols and it is one of the place where you can see signs of the different religions. Some views of Interior are in the travelogue.
Written Dec 26, 2006
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Favorite thing: First church was built in 324-337, then it was burned, rebuit in 415, destroyed again and only third attempt was lucky :-). In the middle of V century the cathedral was built and we see it nowadays. It is 55 meters high and cupola's width is 31 meters. In 1453 the cathedral was changed to the mosque after capture the city by Ottomans.
Written Dec 26, 2006
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Favorite thing: Ayasofya is one of the wonderful architecture I've ever seen. During its history it was both Orthodox Church and Mosque. Originally name was Church of the Holy Wisdom of God. Now it is known as Ayasofya in Turkish and St Sophia in English. Although sofia word means Wisdom in Greek.
Written Dec 26, 2006
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Favorite thing: Visit the Hagia Sofia (devine wisdom) church. This church (turned into a mosque by the Muslims) served as a major influence for the Blue Mosque, standing right across the street, and for a lot of other mosques built all over the Turkish empire.
Updated Mar 28, 2005
Favorite thing:
Constructed more than 1,400,00 years ago this architectural monument is a proof of the sophistication of the Byzantine era.
It under went many renovation/ additions along the different periods and goverments that govern in the capital.
Written May 31, 2004
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Favorite thing: A real MUST in Istambul. Closed on mondays. Opens 9.30-16.30.
Amazing in the outside, is even more amazing inside. Its huge cupola is almost 'floating', only sustained by a few columns. Built with materials from Ephesus and Athens, the bricks are made with material from Rodhes and are 12 times lighter than normal ones!! Built as an orthodox church, Mehmet I turned it into a mosque after conquering the city (1459). Ataturk made a museum of it.
Updated Dec 15, 2002
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Favorite thing: AYASOFYA:Mimarisi, ihtiþamý, büyüklüðü ve iþlevselliði yönünden ilk ve son ünik uygulama olarak görülen Ayasofya; Osmanlý camilerine fikir bazýnda da olsa esin kaynaðý olmuþ, doðu-batý sentezinin bir ürünüdür. Bu eser dünya mimarlýk tarihinin günümüze kadar ayakta kalmýþ en önemli anýtlarý arasýnda yer almaktadýr. Bu nedenle, Ayasofya, tarihi geçmiþinin yaný sýra, mimarisi, mozaikleri ve Türk çaðý yapýlarý ile yüzyýllar boyunca tüm insanlýðýn ilgisini çekmiþtir.
Ayasofya 916 yýl kilise, 481 yýl cami olmuþ, 1935'ten bu yana müze olarak tarihi iþlevini sürdürmektedir.
Bizans tarihçileri (Theophanes, Nikephoros, Gramerci Leon) ilk Ayasofya'nýn Ýmparator I. Konstantinos (324-337) zamanýnda yapýldýðýný ileri sürmüþlerdir. Bazilika planlý, ahþap çatýlý bu yapý, bir ayaklanma sonunda yanmýþtýr. Bu yapýdan hiçbir kalýntý günümüze gelmemiþtir.
Ýmparator II. Theodosius, Ayasofya'yý ikinci defa yaptýrmýþ ve 415'te ibadete açmýþtýr. Yine bazilika planlý bu yapý 532'de Nika ihtilali sýrasýnda yanmýþtýr. 1936 yýlýnda yapýlan kazýlarda bununla ilgili bazý kalýntýlar ortaya çýkmýþtýr. Bunlar mabede giriþi gösteren basamaklar, sütunlar, baþlýklar, çeþitli mimari parçalardýr.
Ýmparator Iustinianus (527-565) ilk iki Ayasofya'dan daha büyük bir kilise yaptýrmak istemiþ, çaðýn ünlü mimarlarýndan Miletos'lu Ýsidoros ve Tralles'i Anthemios'a günümüze ulaþan Ayasofya'yý yaptýrmýþtýr. Anadolu'nun antik þehir kalýntýlarýndan sütunlar, baþlýklar, mermerler ve renkli taþlar Ayasofya'da kullanýlmak üzere Ýstanbul'a getirilmiþtir.
Ayasofya'nýn yapýmýna 23 Aralýk 532'de baþlanmýþ, 27 Aralýk 537'de tamamlanmýþtýr. Mimari yönden incelendiðinde büyük bir orta mekân, iki yan mekân (nef), absis, iç ve dýþ nartekslerden meydana gelmiþtir. Ýç mekân, 100 x 70 m. ölçüsünde olup, üzeri dört büyük ayaðýn taþýdýðý 55 m. yüksekliðinde, 30.31 m. çapýnda kubbe ile örtülmüþtür.
Ayasofya'nýn mimarisinin yaný sýra mozaikleri de büyük önem taþýmaktadýr. En eski mozaikler iç narteks ve yan neflerde altýn yaldýzlý geometrik ve bitkisel motifli olan mozaiklerdir. Figürlü mozaikler IX.-XII. yüzyýllarda yapýlmýþtýr. Bunlar Ýmparator kapýsý üzerinde, absiste, çýkýþ kapýsý üzerinde ve üst kat galeride görülmektedir.
Ayasofya Ýstanbul'un fethi ile birlikte baþlayan Türk döneminde çeþitli onarýmlar görmüþtür. Mihrap çevresi, Türk çini sanatý ve Türk yazý sanatýnýn en güzel örneklerini içerir. Bunlardan kubbedeki ünlü Türk Hattatý Kazasker Mustafa Ýzzet Efendi'nin Kuran'dan alýnma bir suresi ile 7.50 m. çapýndaki yuvarlak levhalar en ilgi çekici olanýdýr. Bu levhalarda, Allah, Muhammed, Ömer, Osman, Ali, Hasan, Ebu Bekir, Hüseyin'in isimleri yazýlýdýr. Mihrabýn yan duvarlarýnda ise Osmanlý padiþahlarýnýn yazýp buraya hediye ettiði levhalar vardýr.
Sultan II. Selim, Sultan III. Mehmet, Sultan III. Murat ve þehzadelerin türbeleri, Sultan I. Mahmut'un þadýrvaný, sýbyan mektebi, imareti, kütüphanesi, Sultan Abdülmecid'in hünkar mahfeli, muvakkithanesi, Ayasofya'daki Türk çaðý örnekleri olup türbeler, iç donanýmý, çinileri ve mimarisiyle klasik Osmanlý türbe geleneðinin en güzel örneklerini oluþturmaktadýr.
Müze pazartesi dýþýnda hergün 09.30-16.30 saatleri arasýnda gezilebilir.
Written Sep 12, 2002
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Favorite thing: visit the Hagia Sophia Mosque, considered as the eight World wonder. The actual basilica was built in the year 537 as the past churches located in the same place were destroyed or burned. It was in that time the biggest Christian church. Even though the dome fell in the year 558 a new one was built afterwards. The basilica was converted into a mosque in 1453 when the Turkish conquered the city. At that time the minarets were added. It has been restored in the past years and as a exemple you have to admire the Byzantine mosaics discovered in 1930. The central nave is a huge magnificent room where you can see the fantastic dome.
Updated Sep 12, 2002
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Favorite thing: Smell of the dream
Dead tired Hodja came home and thought:
~ Suppose that I have delighted soup here, now... And say that I add a little bit red peppery fresh butter to the surface of the soup... And say that I eat spoonfuls out of the soup dish...
While Hodja was thinking the soup, the door was knocked. Hodja opened the door and a neighbour son appeared with an empty bowl.
- What is that, Child? asked Hodja
- Please Hodja, my mother is very ill. Could you give us some soup?
Hodja was confused and terrified. When he send the boy back he thought again:
~ Neigbours!, They are smelling even your dreams.
Fondest memory: AYASOFIA MOSQUE
Written Aug 26, 2002
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Hagia Sophia tips and photos posted by real travelers and Istanbul locals.
Write a ReviewSmell of the dreamDead tired Hodja came home and thought:~ Suppose that I have delighted soup here, now... And say that I add a little bit red peppery fresh...
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