Hagia Sophia

Hagia Sophia, built in 537 on the orders of the Byzantine Emperor Justinian I, served as an Eastern Orthodox cathedral until 1453 (except between 1204-1261, converted in a Roman Catholic cathedral).

It was then, after the conquest of Constantinople by the Ottoman Empire, when the building became a mosque. At that time were destroyed and plastered the Christian symbols and added Islam elements as the mihrab or the four minarets. In 1931, Hagia Sophia was secularized and closed to the public for four years to be opened as a museum by the Republic of Turkey. Although the use of the building as a place of worship was forbidden, since 2013 it is singed from the minarets the call to prayer twice per day and Muslim prayers were held on July 1st, 2016. In 2017, it was organized a gathering in front of the building to pray for its reconversion into a mosque. At present, Hagia Sophia is one of the Turkish most visited tourist attraction.

Project date: 537