An interior view of the
Hagia Sophia in 1852, when it was known as the Ayasofya Mosque. The building was originally constructed as a main
Eastern Orthodox church and served in this role from 537 AD until the
fall of Constantinople in 1453 (except between 1204 and 1261 when it was converted by the
Fourth Crusaders to a
Roman Catholic cathedral). When the
Ottoman Turks under
Mehmed II conquered Constantinople, the Hagia Sophia was converted into a mosque and Christian relics and art were either removed or plastered over. It remained a mosque for almost 500 years, before being converted into a museum between 1931 and 1935. Famous in particular for its massive
dome, it is considered the epitome of
Byzantine architecture and influenced the design of numerous mosques in what is now
Istanbul.
Artwork: Gaspare Fossati; lithograph: Louis Haghe; restoration: Adam Cuerden