Hagia Sophia

VIEW TOWARDS ALTAR OF HAGIA SOPHIA

Istanbul, Turkey 2012

I always think of the Hagia Sophia as a cathedral. Although it was used as a mosque for 500 years, it was a Greek Orthodox cathedral for 1000 years before that. Now it is a museum.  The name Hagia Sophia means Holy Wisdom, not St. Sophia as I had thought. (Even I learn from my blog!)

If you look at the niche above the altar (where the altar would be if it hadn’t been removed) below the dome, you will see a fresco of Mary and Jesus. The Muslims didn’t destroy that fresco as they did the others. Next to it you will see patches where frescoes were chipped away or plastered over.

The first time I entered the nave and looked up toward the dome, I had the sensation of falling into the dome. It is huge. It was the largest cathedral in the world until the construction of Seville Cathedral in 1520.

HAGIA SOPHIA WITH MARBLE URN IN FOREGROUND

A view from a side aisle showing a marble urn brought to the (now) museum from Pergamon, an ancient Greek city taken over by the Romans in 129 B.C.  The urn is sculpted from a single block of marble and was used in Roman purification ceremonies.

Near here is what is called the “sweating pillar”.  There is a hole in the stone pillar where for centuries people have been inserting their finger and, while keeping their index finger inserted,  trying to twist their hand to make a complete circle around the hole. According to tradition, if they succeed, their prayer will be answered.