Turkey

Hagia Sophia is unique.

Built in 537 as the patriarchal cathedral of the imperial capital of Constantinople, it was the largest Christian church of the eastern Roman Empire (the Byzantine Empire) and the Eastern Orthodox Church, except during the Latin Empire from 1204 to 1261, when it temporarily became a Roman Catholic cathedral. In 1453, after the Fall of Constantinople to the Ottoman Empire, it was converted into a mosque. In 1935, the Republic of Turkey established it as a museum. In 2020, it was reconverted into a mosque.

Another unique feature are the huge number of Christian symbols including paintings of Jesus Christ and the Holy Cross.

I felt overwhelmed when I went in.Meer informatie