Sage Facts About the Hagia Sophia

Once the largest cathedral in the world, the Hagia Sophia in Istanbul, Turkey, has stood for more than 1500 years along the banks of the Bosporus Strait and has housed three religious groups.

First built in Constantinople in 360 CE and dedicated by the Roman Emperor Constantius II (son of Constantine

THE CHURCH WAS TWICE DESTROYED BY RIOTS.

Located in the Eastern Roman Empire region known as Byzantium, Constantinople was ruled for 38 years by the Emperor Justinian

THE FIRST GREAT BYZANTINE RULER ORDERED ITS RECONSTRUCTION

Initially called the Great Church (Megale Ekklesia in Greek, Magna Ecclesia in Latin) because of its immense size

 THE CHURCH HAS GONE BY SEVERAL NAMES

Soaring 160 feet high, with a diameter of 131 feet, the grand feature of the Hagia Sophia was its large central dome

THE ORIGINAL DOME WAS REPLACED AFTER AN EARTHQUAKE IN 558 CE.

To fortify (and beautify) the interior of the church, columns from the long-abandoned

ONE OF THE SEVEN ANCIENT WONDERS WAS USED IN THE CHURCH'S CONSTRUCTION.

Byzantium nurtured a centuries-long tradition of art, architecture, knowledge, theology, and literature in a style that fused Greek

IT'S A GREAT EXAMPLE OF BYZANTINE ART AND ARCHITECTURE.

Many mosaics and paintings from the Hagia Sophia were destroyed, taken away, or plastered over.

ICONOCLASM LED TO THE REMOVAL OF MANY PIECES OF ART

A 90-YEAR-OLD, BLIND VENETIAN ONCE CAPTURED HAGIA SOPHIA

During the Fourth Crusade in 1203 CE, Alexius IV made promises to the Crusaders

THE CHURCH BECAME A MOSQUE FOR 500 YEARS

Centuries of sackings, conquests, sieges, raids, and crusades came to an 

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