Constantinople - Hagia Sophia, Undated Diagram
Hagia Sophia Image Gallery
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Hagia Sophia is not only Constantinople's most famous landmarks, it is arguably one of the most famous buildings in the entire world. For over 900 years the current Hagia Sophia (Holy Wisdom) was the seat of the Orthodox patriarch of Constantinople. When the Ottomans captured the city they turned the building into a mosque. Minarets were added and the rich frescos were covered over (because of Islamic prohibitions against depicting human figures). Thus it remained for over 500 years until the Turkish government decided to turn it into a museum and tourist attraction in 1935.
Looking at the plan of Hagia Sophia above, one of the most immediate features is the fact that this is not a cruciform church, the standard design in much of the Christian West. This is, instead, a basilica based upon a centralized plan and which evolved from rectangular Roman architectural forms. The central floor measures 220 feet by 250 feet and the four arches around the nave are 70 feet high. Everything about the various elements is designed to draw the eye higher and higher, up to the dome and, presumably, heaven itself.
Aside from drawing upon Roman heritage, this particular plan is also dictated by the format of Greek Orthodox liturgy. For the sake of both dramatic and sacred effect, a wide open nave creates a stage where the patriarch and his priests can perform a public Mass for a congregation collected along the aisles. In Western churches, by contrast, the nave is where the congregation is gathered to watch the proceedings up front.
