Notable elements and decorations
Originally, under Justinian's reign, the interior decorations consisted of abstract designs on marble slabs on the walls and floors as well as mosaics on the curving vaults. Of these mosaics, the two archangels Gabriel and Michael are still visible in the spandrels (corners) of the bema. There were already a few figurative decorations, as attested by the late 6th-century ekphrasis of Paul the Silentiary, the Description of Hagia Sophia. The spandrels of the gallery are faced in inlaid thin slabs (opus sectile), showing patterns and figures of flowers and birds in precisely cut pieces of white marble set against a background of black marble. In later stages, figurative mosaics were added, which were destroyed during the iconoclastic controversy (726–843). Present mosaics are from the post-iconoclastic period.
Apart from the mosaics, many figurative decorations were added during the second half of the 9th century: an image of Christ in the central dome; Eastern Orthodox saints, prophets and Church Fathers in the tympana below; historical figures connected with this church, such as Patriarch Ignatius; and some scenes from the Gospels in the galleries. Basil II let artists paint a giant six-winged seraph on each of the four pendentives.[82] The Ottomans covered their faces with golden stars,[82] but in 2009, one of them was restored to its original state.[240]
Hagia Sophia menjadi masjid
Sultan Mehmed II segera memberi perintah untuk rekonstruksi kota. Pekerjaan pertama adalah mengubah Hagia Sophia menjadi masjid. Alih-alih menghancurkan seluruh ikon Kekristenan sebelumnya, Sultan Mehmed memerintahkan dekorasi baru pada detailnya dan membuatnya tampak seperti masjid yang indah.
Ketika salat Jum'at pertama diadakan di Hagia Sophia, Mehmed II membacakan khotbahnya sendiri dan gurunya, Akshamsaddin, yang menjadi imam salat.
Mehmed mengundang arsitek dan mandor konstruksi dari Anatolia dan Balkan untuk membangun kembali seluruh kota, dari pembangunan saluran air hingga perbaikan jalan. Dia menghidupkan lembaga seni yang dia dirikan bernama "Nakkahane-i Rum" sambil mendekorasi kota. Dia mengundang seniman tidak hanya dari dunia timur tetapi juga dari Barat. Dia mengundang seniman dari semua negara, terutama Italia.
Setelah penaklukan, sultan menghabiskan sebagian besar waktunya untuk membangun Istanbul dan membangun yayasan untuk merawat Hagia Sophia.
Semua harta benda yang diperoleh sultan saat rampasan perang dihitung satu per satu dan pendapatan mereka disumbangkan ke yayasan untuk membangun banyak artefak di Istanbul, terutama Hagia Sophia.
Interior bangunan Hagia Sophia, di Istanbul, Turki, 10 Juli 2020. Banguna berusia sekitar 1.500 tahun itu termasuk dalam daftar Situs Warisan Dunia sebagai museum. Xinhua/Osman Orsal
Emperor Alexander mosaic
The Emperor Alexander mosaic is not easy to find for the first-time visitor, located on the second floor in a dark corner of the ceiling. It depicts the emperor Alexander in full regalia, holding a scroll in his right hand and a globus cruciger in his left. A drawing by the Fossatis showed that the mosaic survived until 1849 and that Thomas Whittemore, founder of the Byzantine Institute of America who was granted permission to preserve the mosaics, assumed that it had been destroyed in the earthquake of 1894. Eight years after his death, the mosaic was discovered in 1958 largely through the researches of Robert Van Nice. Unlike most of the other mosaics in Hagia Sophia, which had been covered over by ordinary plaster, the Alexander mosaic was simply painted over and reflected the surrounding mosaic patterns and thus was well hidden. It was duly cleaned by the Byzantine Institute's successor to Whittemore, Paul A. Underwood.[273][274]
The Empress Zoe mosaic on the eastern wall of the southern gallery dates from the 11th century. Christ Pantocrator, clad in the dark blue robe (as is the custom in Byzantine art), is seated in the middle against a golden background, giving his blessing with the right hand and holding the Bible in his left hand. On either side of his head are the nomina sacra IC and XC, meaning Iēsous Christos. He is flanked by Constantine IX Monomachus and Empress Zoe, both in ceremonial costumes. He is offering a purse, as a symbol of donation, he made to the church, while she is holding a scroll, symbol of the donations she made. The inscription over the head of the emperor says: "Constantine, pious emperor in Christ the God, king of the Romans, Monomachus". The inscription over the head of the empress reads as follows: "Zoë, the very pious Augusta". The previous heads have been scraped off and replaced by the three present ones. Perhaps the earlier mosaic showed her first husband Romanus III Argyrus or her second husband Michael IV. Another theory is that this mosaic was made for an earlier emperor and empress, with their heads changed into the present ones.[275]
The Comnenus mosaic, also located on the eastern wall of the southern gallery, dates from 1122. The Virgin Mary is standing in the middle, depicted, as usual in Byzantine art, in a dark blue gown. She holds the Christ Child on her lap. He gives his blessing with his right hand while holding a scroll in his left hand. On her right side stands emperor John II Comnenus, represented in a garb embellished with precious stones. He holds a purse, symbol of an imperial donation to the church. His wife, the empress Irene of Hungary stands on the left side of the Virgin, wearing ceremonial garments and offering a document. Their eldest son Alexius Comnenus is represented on an adjacent pilaster. He is shown as a beardless youth, probably representing his appearance at his coronation aged seventeen. In this panel, one can already see a difference with the Empress Zoe mosaic that is one century older. There is a more realistic expression in the portraits instead of an idealized representation. The Empress Irene (born Piroska), daughter of Ladislaus I of Hungary, is shown with plaited blond hair, rosy cheeks, and grey eyes, revealing her Hungarian descent. The emperor is depicted in a dignified manner.[276]
The Deësis mosaic (Δέησις, "Entreaty") probably dates from 1261. It was commissioned to mark the end of 57 years of Latin Catholic use and the return to the Eastern Orthodox faith. It is the third panel situated in the imperial enclosure of the upper galleries. It is widely considered the finest in Hagia Sophia, because of the softness of the features, the humane expressions and the tones of the mosaic. The style is close to that of the Italian painters of the late 13th or early 14th century, such as Duccio. In this panel the Virgin Mary and John the Baptist (Ioannes Prodromos), both shown in three-quarters profile, are imploring the intercession of Christ Pantocrator for humanity on Judgment Day. The bottom part of this mosaic is badly deteriorated.[277] This mosaic is considered as the beginning of a renaissance in Byzantine pictorial art.[278]
Sekilas tentang Sultan Mehmed II
Mehmed II, juga dikenal sebagai Sang Penakluk adalah salah satu sultan Kekaisaran Ottoman yang terkenal dengan kecerdasannya. Mehmed II memerintah Ottoman untuk waktu yang singkat, dari 1444 hingga 1446, setelah ayahnya. Setelah waktu itu Sultan Murad II melepaskan takhta tetapi ketika dia meninggal, Mehmed II memerintah Kekaisaran Ottoman dari tahun 1451 hingga 1481. Mehmet II adalah seorang negarawan jenius dan seorang pemimpin militer yang juga tertarik pada sastra, seni rupa, dan arsitektur monumental. Dia dididik oleh sarjana terkenal Aksemseddin dan menurut sejarawan Ottoman dia berbicara tujuh bahasa dengan lancar, menurut situs theottomans.org.
Potret Sultan Mehmed II oleh Gentile Bellini. Museum Victoria dan Albert, London.[wikimedia.org]
Mehmed II lahir sebagai putra Sultan Murad I dan Huma Hatun pada malam 29 Maret tetapi dicatat pada 30 Maret 1432, di Edirne. Masa kecilnya dihabiskan di Edirne. Dia termotivasi untuk merebut kota Konstantinopel berdasarkan kata-kata Nabi Muhammad untuk penakluk Konstantinopel: "Suatu hari, Konstantinopel akan ditaklukkan. Betapa indah dan diberkatinya komandan penaklukannya dan tentaranya!"
Sultan Mehmed II, menggulingkan Kekaisaran Byzantium dengan menaklukkan Konstantinopel sebagai konsolidasi Kekaisaran Ottoman dan menandai akhir Abad Pertengahan. Dia mengambil nama "penakluk" (fatih) setelah penaklukan Istanbul pada tanggal 29 Mei 1453. Penaklukan Istanbul berarti berakhirnya Kekaisaran Byzantium dan memasuki fase kebangkitan kota di bawah pemerintahan Mehmed dan para penerusnya.
Perebutan Istanbul diikuti oleh suksesi panjang kampanye yang menghasilkan perpanjangan besar kekuasaan langsung Ottoman. Setelah penaklukan kota, Mehmed sang Penakluk berbaris menuju Morea dan merebut kota-kota Yunani satu demi satu. Namun, dia diancam dari belakang oleh kerajaan Karaman dan karena itu beralih ke Anatolia untuk menaklukkan mereka dan untuk mencaplok wilayah mereka. Dia kemudian menaklukkan daerah yang dekat dengan Laut Hitam barat dan ditunjuk sebagai gubernur Kzl Ahmet yang merupakan pendiri kerajaan Isfen-diyar. Setelah itu, ia berperang melawan Uzun Hasan, penguasa Akkoyunlus dan mengalahkannya. Di antara daerah-daerah yang jatuh ke Mehmet II adalah Serbia, Yunani, Kekaisaran Trezibizond, Wallachia, Bosnia, Karaman, Albania dan beberapa perusahaan maritim Venesia dan Geneose.
Penaklukan Konstantinopel
Pengepungan Kontaninopel berlangsung lebih lama dari yang diperkirakan. Para pasha meminta izin kepada sultan untuk menjarah. Sultan memberi izin, tetapi hanya setelah mengajukan tawaran terakhir kepada Kaisar Byzantium Konstantin untuk menyerah, dilansir dari Daily Sabah, 17 Juli 2020.
Akhirnya, pada 29 Mei, kota itu jatuh. Mereka yang memiliki kesempatan, segera melarikan diri. Kaisar Byzantium meninggal saat mempertahankan kota dalam kekacauan ini. Orang-orang bergegas ke Hagia Sophia dengan rasa takut dan panik. Ribuan orang berlindung di basilika besar ini.
Setelah perlawanan Konstantinopel benar-benar hancur, tentara Ustmaniyah diperintahkan untuk tidak membunuh mereka yang tidak melawan dengan senjata.
Ketika Sultan Mehmed memasuki kota dari Topkapi, ia diberi gelar "sang Penakluk". Desas-desus yang beredar menyebut Hagia Sophia adalah bangunan pertama yang ia kunjungi setelah memasuki kota. Di sini, ribuan orang mengawasinya dengan cemas, beberapa dari mereka menangis, memohon, dan bersujud.
Sultan mengundang orang banyak untuk mendengarkan dan memberikan pidato yang indah. Dia mengatakan hidup dan kebebasan mereka aman.
Sultan Mehmed kemudian memberikan penduduk Konstantinopel kewarganegaraan Utsmaniyah gratis. Pemimpin Ortodoks Yunani diberikan status formal dan diberi hak istimewa khusus.
Dia sering mengunjungi Hagia Sophia untuk waktu yang lama. Semua sejarawan mencatat kekaguman Mehmed akan kehebatan struktur Hagia Sophia. Dia membacakan puisi Persia di sini atau, menurut versi lain, ketika dia mengunjungi istana.
th-century restoration
Following the building's conversion into a mosque in 1453, many of its mosaics were covered with plaster, due to Islam's ban on representational imagery. This process was not completed at once, and reports exist from the 17th century in which travellers note that they could still see Christian images in the former church. In 1847–1849, the building was restored by two Swiss-Italian Fossati brothers, Gaspare and Giuseppe, and Sultan Abdulmejid I allowed them to also document any mosaics they might discover during this process, which were later archived in Swiss libraries.[252][better source needed] This work did not include repairing the mosaics, and after recording the details about an image, the Fossatis painted it over again. The Fossatis restored the mosaics of the two hexapteryga (singular Greek: ἑξαπτέρυγον, pr. hexapterygon, six-winged angel; it is uncertain whether they are seraphim or cherubim) located on the two east pendentives, and covered their faces again before the end of the restoration.[253] The other two mosaics, placed on the west pendentives, are copies in paint created by the Fossatis since they could find no surviving remains of them.[253] As in this case, the architects reproduced in paint damaged decorative mosaic patterns, sometimes redesigning them in the process. The Fossati records are the primary sources about a number of mosaic images now believed to have been completely or partially destroyed in the 1894 Istanbul earthquake. These include a mosaic over a now-unidentified Door of the Poor, a large image of a jewel-encrusted cross, and many images of angels, saints, patriarchs, and church fathers. Most of the missing images were located in the building's two tympana.
One mosaic they documented is Christ Pantocrator in a circle, which would indicate it to be a ceiling mosaic, possibly even of the main dome, which was later covered and painted over with Islamic calligraphy that expounds God as the light of the universe. The Fossatis' drawings of the Hagia Sophia mosaics are today kept in the Archive of the Canton of Ticino.[254]
History of Hagia Sophia
Hagia Sophia is a work that was constructed three times in the same location. Today’s Hagia Sophia is known as the “Third Hagia Sophia”. The first construction of Hagia Sophia started during the reign of Constantine I, who accepted Christianity as the official religion of the Roman Empire. This building, which was constructed as a basilica with a wooden roof on the first of the seven hills of Istanbul and was called "The Great Church" at the time, was opened during the reign of Constantine II in 360. There is no remnant from this structure, which was largely devastated as a result of a fire that broke out in the revolt that started in 404.
The second Hagia Sophia was built by Emperor Theodosius II on the first one and opened to worship in 415. This building, which was also constructed as a basilica and with a wooden roof, was devastated by the rebels in the Nika Revolt against Emperor Justinian in 532.
Just after the riots, Emperor Justinian decided to build a larger and more glorious Hagia Sophia than the first two. The third Hagia Sophia was built by the Byzantine Emperor Justinian I in 532-537.
Hagia Sophia, which was used as the Imperial Church of Eastern Rome, was frequently devastated due to riots, wars, and natural disasters throughout history. Hagia Sophia experienced one of the biggest destructions during the 4th Crusade in 1204 when the city was invaded. The Crusaders looted Hagia Sophia along with the whole city. During the Latin occupation that lasted from 1204 to 1261 in Istanbul, Hagia Sophia was converted into a cathedral attached to the Roman Catholic Church.
Repairs were made to try and preserve the Hagia Sophia, which was seriously damaged after the Eastern Roman administration was re-established in Istanbul. However, the repairs were insufficient and in 1346 the eastern archivolt of the Hagia Sophia and a part of the dome collapsed.
In fact, Hagia Sophia experienced the darkest period of its history from the Latin invasion to the conquest of Istanbul. Hagia Sophia, which was destroyed twice and built for the third time, ruined by wars and revolts for centuries, and the parts of which collapsed due to neglect and architectural errors, remained under the permanent threat of collapse until the conquest of Istanbul by Fatih Sultan Mehmed Khan. In addition, the sociological and symbolic meaning of the temple was greatly damaged due to the schism between the Catholic and Orthodox churches.
The Ottomans took great care of the Hagia Sophia Mosque, which they acknowledged and appreciated as the symbol of the conquest, maintained and repaired it continuously, and turned the mosque into a much more robust structure starting from the rule of Fatih Sultan Mehmed Khan. In particular, the additions and arrangements made by Sinan the Architect to Hagia Sophia played a major role in the survival of this heritage of humanity.
Thus, it is stated in the historical records that Fatih Sultan Mehmed Khan, who went to Hagia Sophia right after the conquest, was saddened by the status of the mosque and recited the following verses:
“Perdedâri mîkoned ber kasr-i Kayser ankebut Bûm novbet mîzened der tarem-i Efrâsiyâb”
(“A spider spins its web in the palace of the Kaiser, An owl hoots in the towers of Afrasiab")
Fatih Sultan Mehmed Khan, who endowed the Hagia Sophia Mosque as his own charity and secured the maintenance-repair costs by providing the income from several properties, started the educational activities by building a madrasah adjacent to the mosque. The first minaret of Hagia Sophia was built of wood during the rule of Fatih Sultan Mehmed Khan. This minaret, which existed for many years, was removed during the major repair in 1574. The second minaret of the Hagia Sophia Mosque was built of bricks during the rule of Sultan Bayezid II.
One of the Ottoman sultans who showed the greatest interest in Hagia Sophia was Sultan Selim II. After the building showed signs of fatigue, Selim II Khan appointed Sinan the Architect for the maintenance and repair of Hagia Sophia. The Hagia Sophia, whose domes and walls collapsed many times during the Eastern Roman period, never collapsed again after the renovations of Sinan the Architect despite many great earthquakes in Istanbul. The tradition of building tombs for the sultans in the graveyard of Hagia Sophia Complex started with the first tomb built by Sinan the Architect for Sultan Selim II.
From the time of Fatih Sultan Mehmet Khan, every sultan strived to beautify the Hagia Sophia even more, and the Hagia Sophia was transformed into an entire complex with structures such as mihrab, minbar, rostrum, minarets, sultan's office, shadirvans (fountain providing water for ritual ablutions), madrasah, library, and soup kitchen. In addition, great importance was attached to the interior decorations of the Hagia Sophia Mosque during the Ottoman period. Hagia Sophia was adorned with the most elegant examples of Turkish arts such as calligraphy and tile art and the temple gained new aesthetic values. Thus, Hagia Sophia was not only converted into a mosque but also this common heritage of humanity was preserved and improved.
Hagia Sophia, which was converted into a mosque with the conquest and served as a mosque for 481 years, was closed off to the public after the restoration works started in the 1930s. Then it was turned into a museum with a Cabinet Decree dated November 24, 1934. The Council of State reversed the Cabinet Decree in question on July 10, 2020. The Hagia Sophia Mosque was reopened to worship with the Presidential Decree No. 2729 signed by President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and promulgated immediately after.
As the Cabinet Decree dated 24/11/1934 and numbered 2/1589 on the conversion of the Hagia Sophia Mosque in Fatih District of Istanbul Province into a museum was annulled by the Decision of the Tenth Chamber of the Council of State dated 2/7/2020 and numbered E:2016/16015, K:2020/2595, it was decided that the administration of the Hagia Sophia Mosque was transferred to the Presidency of Religious Affairs in accordance with Article 35 of the Law on the Establishment and Duties of the Presidency of Religious Affairs No. 633 dated 22/6/1965.
Recep Tayyip ERDOĞAN | PRESIDENT
Hagia Sophia (tiếng Hy Lạp: Ἁγία Σοφία, "Sự khôn ngoan của Thiên Chúa", tiếng Latinh: Sancta Sapientia, tiếng Thổ Nhĩ Kỳ: Ayasofya) ban đầu là một Vương cung thánh đường Chính thống giáo Đông phương, sau là thánh đường Hồi giáo, và nay là một viện bảo tàng ở Istanbul, Thổ Nhĩ Kỳ. Đặc biệt nổi tiếng vì vòm trần lớn, tòa nhà này được xem là hình ảnh mẫu mực của kiến trúc Byzantine, và được coi là đã "thay đổi lịch sử của kiến trúc".[1] Đây từng là nhà thờ lớn nhất thế giới trong gần một ngàn năm, cho đến khi Nhà thờ chính tòa Sevilla hoàn thành vào năm 1520.
Tòa nhà hiện nay vốn được xây dựng làm nhà thờ từ năm 532 đến năm 537 theo lệnh của Hoàng đế Byzantine Justinian, và đã là Nhà thờ Sự khôn ngoan của Thiên Chúa thứ 3 được xây dựng tại địa điểm này (hai nhà thờ trước đã bị phá hủy bởi quân phiến loạn). Tòa nhà được thiết kế bởi hai kiến trúc sư Isidorus xứ Miletus và Anthemius xứ Tralles. Nhà thờ có một bộ sưu tập các thánh tích và có một bức tường tranh bằng bạc dài 15 m. Đây là nhà thờ trung tâm của Giáo hội Chính thống giáo Đông phương và trụ sở của Thượng phụ Đại kết thành Constantinopolis trong gần 1000 năm.
Năm 1453, kinh đô Constantinopolis bị đế quốc Ottoman chiếm. Vua Mehmed II lệnh biến tòa nhà thành một nhà thờ Hồi giáo. Chuông khánh, bàn thờ, tường tranh bị gỡ bỏ, nhiều phần nền khảm tranh mosaic bị trát vữa đè lên. Các chi tiết kiến trúc Hồi giáo, chẳng hạn mihrab, minbar, và 4 minaret ở bên ngoài, được xây thêm trong thời của các Ottoman. Tòa nhà là nơi thờ phụng của Hồi giáo cho đến năm 1935, khi nó được chính phủ Cộng hòa Thổ Nhĩ Kỳ chuyển thành một viện bảo tàng.
Trong gần 500 năm, Hagia Sophia là thánh đường Hồi giáo chính của Istanbul, làm mẫu hình cho nhiều thánh đường Hồi giáo Ottoman khác như Thánh đường Hồi giáo Vua Ahmed, Thánh đường Hồi giáo Şehzade, Thánh đường Hồi giáo Süleymaniye, và Thánh đường Hồi giáo Rüstem Pasha.
Tuy đôi khi nhà thờ được gọi là Sancta Sophia theo tiếng Latinh, giống với cách gọi dành cho Thánh Sophia, nhưng sophia là cách chuyển tự Latinh từ tiếng Hy Lạp, thuật từ Sophia có nghĩa là trí tuệ hoặc sự khôn ngoan. Tên đầy đủ bằng tiếng Hy Lạp là Ναός τῆς Ἁγίας τοῦ Θεοῦ Σοφίας, nghĩa là Đền Sự khôn ngoan của Thiên Chúa.
Hagia Sophia là một trong những tòa nhà thuộc khu vực lịch sử Istanbul được UNESCO công nhận là di sản thế giới.
Hiện tại không có bằng chứng hay dấu tích nào cho biết ngôi đền thứ nhất (gọi là Μεγάλη Ἐκκλησία (Megálē Ekklēsíā, "Đền thờ lớn") đã được xây dựng chính xác tại đâu, có lẽ chính tại Istanbul hay "Magna Ecclesia" (một khu vực cổ ở Mỹ Latin).[2]
Trong quá khứ, đền thứ nhất từng là nơi thờ phụng của các tôn giáo Đa thần.[3] Ngôi đền được xây gần cung điện hoàng gia và cạnh bên ngôi đền Hagia Eirene[4]. Ngày 15 tháng 2, năm 360, hoàng đế Constantius II cho khánh thành Hagia Sophia. Và từ đây, cả hai ngôi đền (Hagia Sophia và Hagia Eirene) được dùng để tôn thờ đế chế Byzantine.
Sở dĩ người hiện đại biết đến sự có mặt của Ngôi đền thứ nhất là nhờ những ghi chép của Socrates của dân Constantinopolis[5], ngôi đền dùng tôn thờ hoàng đế Constantine Đại đế. Kiến trúc ngôi đền dựa theo kiến trúc truyền thống Latin với những kiệt tác hội họa, hàng hàng cột chống trần và mái vòm gỗ.
Đền thứ nhất vẫn đang chờ xem xét phong tặng danh hiệu kì quan thế giới.
Cái tên "Megálē Ekklēsíā" đã từng được sử dụng trong một khoảng thời gian khá dài trước khi bị thay thế bởi cái tên "Hagia Sophia" trong cuộc xâm lăng của người Byzantine năm 1453.
Ngày 20 tháng 6 năm 404, Thị trưởng của Constantinople, John Chrysostom, gây mâu thuẫn với nữ chúa Aelia Eudoxia, vợ hoàng đế Arcadius. Ngay sau đó, ông bị bắt và bị đày đi xa xứ. Trong cuộc nổi loạn của dân chúng, phần lớn Ngôi đền thứ nhất bị thiêu cháy. Và hoàng đế Theodosius II ra lệnh xây ngôi đền mới. Ngôi đền thứ hai được xây dựng, khánh thành ngày 10 tháng 10 năm 405. Một nhà thờ thứ hai được xây theo lệnh của Theodosius II, ông khánh thành nó vào ngày 10 tháng 10 năm 405. Sự náo loạn của lễ hội Nika Revolt đã dẫn đến sự tàn phá Ngôi đền thứ hai, ngôi đền đã bị thiêu thành tro bụi chỉ trong hai ngày 13-14 tháng 1 năm 532.
Những phiến đá hoa cương là những phế tích còn tồn tại đến ngày hôm nay, chứng minh sự tồn tại của Ngôi đền thứ hai, và hiện tại chúng đang được lưu giữ trong khuôn viên khu đền hiện tại (Ngôi đền thứ ba). Những phiến đá này là một phần cổng của ngôi đền xưa; được A.M. Schneider khai quật trong cái sân nhỏ nằm ở hướng Tây năm 1935.
Ngay sau khi đế quốc Ottoman (do Muslim Millet dẫn đầu) xâm chiếm Constantinopolis (Istanbul) vào năm 1453, Hagia Sophia bị biến thành đền thờ Hồi giáo như là chiến lợi phẩm của cuộc xâm chiếm. Lúc đó, đền thờ đã hư hỏng rất nặng, nhiều cánh cửa đã hoai mục hay gãy vỡ. Những hư hỏng này được miêu tả rất chi tiết trong quyển ghi chép của nhiều du khách xưa, như Pero Tafur người thành Córdoba, Tây Ban Nha[6] và Cristoforo Buondelmonti người thành Florence, Ý.[7] Vua Thổ Nhĩ Kỳ Mehmed II đã cho trùng tu khu di tích này và lập tức biến nó thành đền thờ Hồi giáo. Sau đó, vua Bayezid II xây thêm một cái tháp để thay thế cái tháp cũ vua cha đã xây.
Vào thế kỉ 16, vua Suleiman I (1520-1566) đem về hai ngọn đèn cầy khổng lồ chiếm được trong cuộc chinh phạt Hungary. Chúng được đặt hai bên hông của mihrab (một khoảng trống trên tường biểu trưng cho Kaaba ở Mecca và để chỉ hướng cúi đầu lạy. Dưới triều vua Selim II (1566-1574), ngôi đền lại xuất hiện thêm nhiều dấu hiệu hư hỏng, và lại được mở rộng trùng tu, bổ sung thêm nhiều quần thể kiến trúc do kiến trúc sư đại tài người Ottoman Sinan chỉ huy xây dựng, ông được xem là kĩ sư vĩ đại với những công trình chống lại động đất. Ngoài ra, để kéo dài tuổi thọ cho kiến trúc lịch sử Byzantine này, Sinan đã xây thêm hai tháp trụ khổng lồ ở phía cực Tây của công trình, và ở lăng Selim II phía Đông nam năm 1574. Hai lăng mộ của các vua Murad III và Mehmed III được xây cạnh bên đền thờ trong thập niên 1600.
Năm 1935, Tổng thống đầu tiên và là người thiết lập nền Cộng hoà ở Thổ Nhĩ Kỳ, Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, cho biến công trình này thành viện bảo tàng. Người ta dỡ bỏ đệm trải sàn và những tran trí bằng đá hoa cương trên sàn xuất hiện lại lần đầu tiên qua nhiều thế kỷ, cùng lúc đó vôi trăng che kín các tranh khảm đá quý cũng được gỡ ra.[8]
Xây dựng dưới thời hoàng đế Justinian tại Constantinople, do hai KTS Anthemius de Tralles và Isidorius de Miletus thiết kế. Trung tâm nhà thờ là mặt bằng hình vuông (75,6m x 68,4m), phía trên bao phủ bằng vòm bán cầu đường kính 33m (cao 51m tính từ nền) với cấu trúc vòm buồm.Tại phần tambour có 40 cửa sổ lấy ánh sáng.
Kích thước và cấu trúc của mái vòm là một kiệt tác về thiết kế, và tạo một sự đột phá về kết cấu, trở thành một thành tựu rực rỡ mà kiến trúc Byzantine đã đạt được.
Từ 1453 sau khi nhà thờ được đổi chức năng thành nhà thờ hồi giáo. Người Thổ Nhĩ Kỳ đã cho xây thêm 4 tháp nhọn Hồi Giáo ở 4 góc gọi là các tháp Minaret, tạo nên cảnh quan nhà thờ như ngày nay.
Nhà thờ Hagia Sophia đã là nhà thờ Cơ đốc giáo bề thế nhất và đẹp nhất ở phương Đông, là nhân chứng bền vững của lịch sử kiến trúc tôn giáo.
Wikimedia Commons có thêm hình ảnh và phương tiện truyền tải về
Southwestern entrance mosaic
The southwestern entrance mosaic, situated in the tympanum of the southwestern entrance, dates from the reign of Basil II.[260] It was rediscovered during the restorations of 1849 by the Fossatis. The Virgin sits on a throne without a back, her feet resting on a pedestal, embellished with precious stones. The Christ Child sits on her lap, giving his blessing and holding a scroll in his left hand. On her left side stands emperor Constantine in ceremonial attire, presenting a model of the city to Mary. The inscription next to him says: "Great emperor Constantine of the Saints". On her right side stands emperor Justinian I, offering a model of the Hagia Sophia. The medallions on both sides of the Virgin's head carry the nomina sacra MP and ΘΥ, abbreviations of the Greek: Μήτηρ του Θεοῦ, romanized: Mētēr Theou, lit. 'Mother of God'.[261] The composition of the figure of the Virgin enthroned was probably copied from the mosaic inside the semi-dome of the apse inside the liturgical space.[262]
The mosaic in the semi-dome above the apse at the east end shows Mary, mother of Jesus holding the Christ Child and seated on a jewelled thokos backless throne.[262] Since its rediscovery after a period of concealment in the Ottoman era, it "has become one of the foremost monuments of Byzantium".[262] The infant Jesus's garment is depicted with golden tesserae.
Guillaume-Joseph Grelot, who had travelled to Constantinople, in 1672 engraved and in 1680 published in Paris an image of the interior of Hagia Sophia which shows the apse mosaic indistinctly.[262] Together with a picture by Cornelius Loos drawn in 1710, these images are early attestations of the mosiac before it was covered towards the end of the 18th century.[262] The mosaic of the Virgin and Child was rediscovered during the restorations of the Fossati brothers in 1847–1848 and revealed by the restoration of Thomas Whittemore in 1935–1939.[262] It was studied again in 1964 with the aid of scaffolding.[262][263]
It is not known when this mosaic was installed.[262] According to Cyril Mango, the mosaic is "a curious reflection on how little we know about Byzantine art".[264] The work is generally believed to date from after the end of Byzantine Iconoclasm and usually dated to the patriarchate of Photius I (r. 858–867, 877–886) and the time of the emperors Michael III (r. 842–867) and Basil I (r. 867–886).[262] Most specifically, the mosaic has been connected with a surviving homily known to have been written and delivered by Photius in the cathedral on 29 March 867.[262][265][266][267][268]
Other scholars have favoured earlier or later dates for the present mosaic or its composition. Nikolaos Oikonomides pointed out that Photius's homily refers to a standing portrait of the Theotokos – a Hodegetria – while the present mosaic shows her seated.[269] Likewise, a biography of the patriarch Isidore I (r. 1347–1350) by his successor Philotheus I (r. 1353–1354, 1364–1376) composed before 1363 describes Isidore seeing a standing image of the Virgin at Epiphany in 1347.[262] Serious damage was done to the building by earthquakes in the 14th century, and it is possible that a standing image of the Virgin that existed in Photius's time was lost in the earthquake of 1346, in which the eastern end of Hagia Sophia was partly destroyed.[270][262] This interpretation supposes that the present mosaic of the Virgin and Child enthroned is of the late 14th century, a time in which, beginning with Nilus of Constantinople (r. 1380–1388), the patriarchs of Constantinople began to have official seals depicting the Theotokos enthroned on a thokos.[271][262]
Still other scholars have proposed an earlier date than the later 9th century. According to George Galavaris, the mosaic seen by Photius was a Hodegetria portrait which after the earthquake of 989 was replaced by the present image not later than the early 11th century.[271][270] According to Oikonomides however, the image in fact dates to before the Triumph of Orthodoxy, having been completed c. 787–797, during the iconodule interlude between the First Iconoclast (726–787) and the Second Iconoclast (814–842) periods.[269] Having been plastered over in the Second Iconoclasm, Oikonomides argues a new, standing image of the Virgin Hodegetria was created above the older mosaic in 867, which then fell off in the earthquakes of the 1340s and revealed again the late 8th-century image of the Virgin enthroned.[269]
More recently, analysis of a hexaptych menologion icon panel from Saint Catherine's Monastery at Mount Sinai has determined that the panel, showing numerous scenes from the life of the Virgin and other theologically significant iconic representations, contains an image at the centre very similar to that in Hagia Sophia.[262] The image is labelled in Greek merely as: Μήτηρ Θεοῦ, romanized: Mētēr Theou, lit. 'Mother of God', but in the Georgian language the inscription reveals the image is labelled "of the semi-dome of Hagia Sophia".[262] This image is therefore the oldest depiction of the apse mosaic known and demonstrates that the apse mosaic's appearance was similar to the present day mosaic in the late 11th or early 12th centuries, when the hexaptych was inscribed in Georgian by a Georgian monk, which rules out a 14th-century date for the mosaic.[262]
The portraits of the archangels Gabriel and Michael (largely destroyed) in the bema of the arch also date from the 9th century. The mosaics are set against the original golden background of the 6th century. These mosaics were believed to be a reconstruction of the mosaics of the 6th century that were previously destroyed during the iconoclastic era by the Byzantines of that time, as represented in the inaugural sermon by the patriarch Photios. However, no record of figurative decoration of Hagia Sophia exists before this time.[272]
Loggia of the Empress
The loggia of the empress is located in the centre of the gallery of the Hagia Sophia, above the Imperial Gate and directly opposite the apse. From this matroneum (women's gallery), the empress and the court-ladies would watch the proceedings down below. A green stone disc of verd antique marks the spot where the throne of the empress stood.[241][242]
Two huge marble lustration (ritual purification) urns were brought from Pergamon during the reign of Sultan Murad III. They are from the Hellenistic period and carved from single blocks of marble.[19]
The Marble Door inside the Hagia Sophia is located in the southern upper enclosure or gallery. It was used by the participants in synods, who entered and left the meeting chamber through this door. It is said[by whom?] that each side is symbolic and that one side represents heaven while the other represents hell. Its panels are covered in fruits and fish motifs. The door opens into a space that was used as a venue for solemn meetings and important resolutions of patriarchate officials.[243]
The Nice Door is the oldest architectural element found in the Hagia Sophia dating back to the 2nd century BC. The decorations are of reliefs of geometric shapes as well as plants that are believed to have come from a pagan temple in Tarsus in Cilicia, part of the Cibyrrhaeot Theme in modern-day Mersin Province in south-eastern Turkey. It was incorporated into the building by Emperor Theophilos in 838 where it is placed in the south exit in the inner narthex.[244]
The Imperial Gate is the door that was used solely by the Emperor and his personal bodyguard and retinue.[227] It is the largest door in the Hagia Sophia and has been dated to the 6th century. It is about 7 meters long and Byzantine sources say it was made with wood from Noah's Ark.[245]
In April 2022, the door was vandalised by unknown assailant(s). The incident became known after the Association of Art Historians published a photo with the destruction. The Greek Foreign Ministry condemned the incident, while Turkish officials claimed that "a citizen has taken a piece of the door" and started an investigation.[246]
At the northwest of the building, there is a column with a hole in the middle covered by bronze plates. This column goes by different names; the "perspiring" or "sweating column", the "crying column", or the "wishing column". Legend states that it has been moist since the appearance of Gregory Thaumaturgus near the column in 1200. It is believed that touching the moisture cures many illnesses.[247][248]
Church of Constantius II
The first church on the site was known as the Magna Ecclesia (Μεγάλη Ἐκκλησία, Megálē Ekklēsíā, 'Great Church')[21][22] because of its size compared to the sizes of the contemporary churches in the city.[13] According to the Chronicon Paschale, the church was consecrated on 15 February 360, during the reign of the emperor Constantius II (r. 337–361) by the Arian bishop Eudoxius of Antioch.[23][24] It was built next to the area where the Great Palace was being developed. According to the 5th-century ecclesiastical historian Socrates of Constantinople, the emperor Constantius had c. 346 "constructed the Great Church alongside that called Irene which because it was too small, the emperor's father [Constantine] had enlarged and beautified".[25][23] A tradition which is not older than the 7th or 8th century reports that the edifice was built by Constantius' father, Constantine the Great (r. 306–337).[23] Hesychius of Miletus wrote that Constantine built Hagia Sophia with a wooden roof and removed 427 (mostly pagan) statues from the site.[26] The 12th-century chronicler Joannes Zonaras reconciles the two opinions, writing that Constantius had repaired the edifice consecrated by Eusebius of Nicomedia, after it had collapsed.[23] Since Eusebius was the bishop of Constantinople from 339 to 341, and Constantine died in 337, it seems that the first church was erected by Constantius.[23]
The nearby Hagia Irene ("Holy Peace") church was completed earlier and served as cathedral until the Great Church was completed. Besides Hagia Irene, there is no record of major churches in the city-centre before the late 4th century.[24] Rowland Mainstone argued the 4th-century church was not yet known as Hagia Sophia.[27] Though its name as the 'Great Church' implies that it was larger than other Constantinopolitan churches, the only other major churches of the 4th century were the Church of St Mocius, which lay outside the Constantinian walls and was perhaps attached to a cemetery, and the Church of the Holy Apostles.[24]
The church itself is known to have had a timber roof, curtains, columns, and an entrance that faced west.[24] It likely had a narthex and is described as being shaped like a Roman circus.[28] This may mean that it had a U-shaped plan like the basilicas of San Marcellino e Pietro and Sant'Agnese fuori le mura in Rome.[24] However, it may also have been a more conventional three-, four-, or five-aisled basilica, perhaps resembling the original Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem or the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem.[24] The building was likely preceded by an atrium, as in the later churches on the site.[29]
According to Ken Dark and Jan Kostenec, a further remnant of the 4th century basilica may exist in a wall of alternating brick and stone banded masonry immediately to the west of the Justinianic church.[30] The top part of the wall is constructed with bricks stamped with brick-stamps dating from the 5th century, but the lower part is of constructed with bricks typical of the 4th century.[30] This wall was probably part of the propylaeum at the west front of both the Constantinian and Theodosian Great Churches.[30]
The building was accompanied by a baptistery and a skeuophylakion.[24] A hypogeum, perhaps with an martyrium above it, was discovered before 1946, and the remnants of a brick wall with traces of marble revetment were identified in 2004.[30] The hypogeum was a tomb which may have been part of the 4th-century church or may have been from the pre-Constantinian city of Byzantium.[30] The skeuophylakion is said by Palladius to have had a circular floor plan, and since some U-shaped basilicas in Rome were funerary churches with attached circular mausolea (the Mausoleum of Constantina and the Mausoleum of Helena), it is possible it originally had a funerary function, though by 405 its use had changed.[30] A later account credited a woman called Anna with donating the land on which the church was built in return for the right to be buried there.[30]
Excavations on the western side of the site of the first church under the propylaeum wall reveal that the first church was built atop a road about 8 m (26 ft) wide.[30] According to early accounts, the first Hagia Sophia was built on the site of an ancient pagan temple,[31][32][33] although there are no artefacts to confirm this.[34]
The Patriarch of Constantinople John Chrysostom came into a conflict with Empress Aelia Eudoxia, wife of the emperor Arcadius (r. 383–408), and was sent into exile on 20 June 404. During the subsequent riots, this first church was largely burnt down.[23] Palladius noted that the 4th-century skeuophylakion survived the fire.[35] According to Dark and Kostenec, the fire may only have affected the main basilica, leaving the surrounding ancillary buildings intact.[35]
