Hagia Sophia in Istanbul, the Church of the Wisdom of God

Hagia Sophia is one of the greatest early Christian monuments in the world.

While planning my trip to Istanbul, I made a list of places and landmarks that I particularly wanted to see. At the very top of the list was Hagia Sophia, a Byzantine temple, one of the largest and most valuable monuments from the early Christian period.

In the article below, I will tell you about my visit to this extraordinary temple, as well as offer advice on the best time to plan your visit and how to prepare for it. Of course, I will provide plenty of information and interesting facts, along with a brief overview of its history.

Hagia Sophia, Istanbul: Tourist Pass a city card that will save you money and time

I’ll start a bit unconventionally, with some advice on how to plan your visit to Hagia Sophia. First, you need to be aware that for the past few months, this monument is no longer a free attraction in Istanbul. The ticket costs quite a bit, around several dozen euros, and this is just for entry to the temple. All other attractions around it, such as the Basilica Cistern or the nearby Topkapi Palace, require separate tickets, which are also not cheap.

Istanbul has become significantly pricier recently, especially noticeable in the prices of tickets for city attractions. There are, of course, a few ways to save a bit; I suggest checking the website, where there are often good sales and interesting deals for purchasing tickets or entire tours.

If you plan to explore Istanbul for many days, a suitable option is to buy the Istanbul TouristPass. It allows you to visit over a hundred attractions across the city, and importantly, you can skip the line at most of them. This is crucial, as you’ll understand when you see the crowds of tourists waiting at the ticket booths. The card not only lets you visit the most fascinating places in Istanbul, but also take part in concerts, Bosphorus cruises, and shorter or longer trips outside the city. We used it ourselves, so I can wholeheartedly recommend it to everyone.

Since 1934, Hagia Sophia served as a museum, but in 2020 it was converted back into a mosque. Therefore, remember that during your visit, the same rules apply as in any other Muslim place of worship. Women need to cover their hair, legs, and shoulders, and men should avoid wearing shorts. Although, as is often the case in the Muslim world, men have a bit more leeway.

Once inside the temple, there is no time limit, so you can freely wander through the corridors and balconies for as long as you wish. This gives you the opportunity to find the famous mosaics scattered throughout the building. Moreover, keep in mind that while it’s allowed to photograph the interiors, you shouldn’t use a flash, especially when taking pictures of the lower part of Hagia Sophia, where worshippers are praying.

Hagia Sophia and the famous mosaics on the walls of the temple

In the Byzantine Empire, there was a centuries-long dispute over whether it was permissible to venerate figures depicted in images or icons. Some were strongly opposed to creating portraits, believing it was idolatry and contrary to one of the Ten Commandments. Others argued that icons and the saints depicted on them were symbols of their faith. Therefore, most of the mosaics in Hagia Sophia were created after the period of iconoclasm, which eased in the 9th century.

Unfortunately, the mosaics that have survived in the temple to this day are only a small portion of the original decorations. However, if you are attentive and give yourself enough time, you can still find the images that have endured through the challenging centuries for the building. The most famous mosaics include those placed at the Imperial Gate, above the entrance to the temple in its southwestern part, and the depiction of Emperor Alexander located on the church’s ceiling.

The mosaics in Hagia Sophia depicted saints, church fathers, prophets, and angels. Images of Christ and the Virgin with the child often appeared as well. However, old documents reveal that not all images in the temple had a religious character. Among the figures, there were also portraits of emperors and members of the imperial family, suggesting that there was virtually no separation between church and state in the Byzantine Empire.

Today, many of the mosaics have been covered by Muslim elements so that they are not visible to the worshippers praying below. Therefore, you might have to wait in long lines to get to the spots where you can see them.

Hagia Sophia and its history

Hagia Sophia is not the first temple to have stood in this part of Istanbul (formerly Constantinople). In the early third century, Emperor Constantine I, the first Roman emperor to adopt Christianity, ordered the construction of the first church. It was built on the foundations of an earlier pagan temple. Although no details about it have survived, legends say it was dedicated to a terrifying deity that frightened the early Christians, and to completely erase its memory, a church was erected in its place.

The new structure was destroyed by fire, as was the next one, which was demolished during a popular uprising in 532. The revolt broke out due to the emperor’s failure to address rampant abuses in Constantinople and the constant increase in taxes. Despite the emperor’s Christian faith, the uprising was suppressed using old, tried-and-true Roman methods, resulting in the massacre of over thirty thousand discontented citizens.

The destruction of the city gave the emperor an excuse to build a new temple, which would become Hagia Sophia. The church was constructed at an almost express pace, in just six years. The architects of this grand project were two famous scholars, Anthemius of Tralles and the mathematician Isidore of Miletus.

The building you can see in Istanbul today dates back to the 6th century, but over the many centuries that have passed, it has been repeatedly renovated and reinforced. It also faced numerous tragedies, such as the earthquake in 558 that caused the collapse of the main dome. In 1204, Hagia Sophia, along with the rest of Constantinople, was plundered by Venetians and Crusaders during the Fourth Crusade.

The darkest days for the old church came with the capture of Constantinople by the Turks in 1453. Almost immediately, the church was converted into a mosque, and typical Muslim elements, such as minarets and a mihrab (a niche indicating the direction of Mecca), began to be added. The original wooden minarets eventually decayed, and new, stone ones were erected in their place, which still surround the building today.

In 1985, Hagia Sophia was listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site as part of the Historic Areas of Istanbul.

Hagia Sophia information, facts, and curiosities

• Hagia Sophia was built in 537 as an Eastern Christian church dedicated to the Holy Wisdom, also known as the Great Church.
• For centuries, it was a symbol of the Byzantine Church and a temple of the highest rank, where new emperors were crowned.
• No expense was spared on building materials and architects. Columns were brought from Syria and Egypt, along with colourful stones and terracotta. Precious white marble came from quarries around the Sea of Marmara, while its pink variety was sourced from Afyon. Even bricks were imported from the island of Rhodes in Greece.
• Over 200 architects and thousands of construction workers were involved in building the temple.
• For more than a thousand years, Hagia Sophia served as the cathedral of Ecumenical Constantinople.
• The temple was taken over by the Turks in 1453 and converted into a mosque.
• Many Christian elements were not destroyed but covered with a thick layer of plaster, so they are still there, waiting for a change in the course of history.
• From 1935, it functioned as a museum.
• Today, the building serves again as a mosque, with the lower level accessible only to Muslim worshippers.
• The building houses 104 columns, most of which are on the upper level, which is currently open to visitors.
• The main dome rises 56 meters above the floor.
• The ceiling in the vestibule is covered in pure gold.
• Until the construction of St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome, Hagia Sophia’s dome was the largest in the world.
• In 1985, Hagia Sophia was listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
• Until the end of 2023, entrance to the temple was free.
• Inside, there is a bronze-covered column that, according to legend, sweats, and grants wishes. If you touch it with your finger, and it feels wet, you can make a wish.
• One of the legends claims that the doors of the temple were made from wood taken from Noah’s Ark.
• The oldest element in the temple is the Nicaean Doors, dating back to the 2nd century BCE.
• In the temple’s floor, there is an opening called the “snowball,” through which you can see the remnants of an ancient, now-destroyed crypt.

Polish version