Hagia Sophia

(noun)

A church built by Byzantine Emperor Justinian; the center of Christianity in Constantinople and one of the greatest buildings in the world to this day. It is now a mosque in the Muslim Istanbul.

Related Terms

Examples of Hagia Sophia in the following topics:

  • Architecture in the Early Byzantine Empire

    • Like most Byzantine churches of this time, the Hagia Sophia is centrally-planned, with the dome serving as its focal point.
    • The dome of Hagia Sophia has spurred particular interest for many art historians, architects and engineers because of the innovative way the original architects envisioned it.
    • After the Ottoman conquest of Constantinople, the plan of the Hagia Sophia would significantly influence the construction and design of the Süleymaniye Mosque (1550-1557).
    • The Church of Saints Sergius and Bacchus (527-536), known today as "Little Hagia Sophia," was probably a model for the actual Hagia Sophia.
    • Emperor Justinian ordered the construction of Hagia Sophia in 532 CE.

  • Architecture and Mosaics in the Middle Byzantine Empire

    • At the end of the first session, on the first day of Lent, all made a triumphal procession from the Church of Blachernae to Hagia Sophia, restoring the icons to the church in an event called the Feast of Orthodoxy.
    • A series of naturalistic innovations can be seen in examples from the Hagia Sophia, the monastery of Hosios Loukas, and Saint Mark's Basilica.
    • The Hagia Sophia is a former Greek Orthodox patriarchal basilica (church), constructed from 537 until 1453.
    • After the end of iconoclasm, a new mosaic was dedicated in the Hagia Sophia under the Patriarch Photius and the Macedonian emperors Michael III and Basil I.
    • These characteristics seen in Byzantine mosaics began to change in the following century, partially through the addition of perspective in the Theokotos of the Hagia Sophia.

  • Justinian and Theodora

    • Emperor Justinian was responsible for substantial expansion, a legal code, and the Hagia Sophia but suffered defeats against the Persians.
    • His greatest accomplishment was the Hagia Sophia, the most important church of the city.
    • The Hagia Sophia was a staggering work of Byzantine architecture, intended to awe all who set foot in the church.
    • Byzantine Emperor Justinian built the Greek Orthodox Church of the Holy Wisdom of God, the Hagia Sophia, which was completed in only four and a half years (532 CE–537 CE).

  • Islamic Architecture

    • Byzantine styles as seen in the Hagia Sophia served as particularly important models for Ottoman mosques, such as the mosque constructed by Sinan.

  • Ottoman Empire

    • Byzantine styles as seen in the Hagia Sophia served as particularly important models for Ottoman mosques, such as the mosque constructed by Sinan.

  • The Byzantine Empire

    • After the fall of the Western Empire, several churches, including the Hagia Sophia in Constantinople and San Vitale in Ravenna, were built as centrally-planned structures.

  • Architecture of Aksun and Lalibela

    • Its dome bears a striking resemblance to the Hagia Sophia in Istanbul, Turkey.

  • Iconoclasm in Byzantium

    • It was made official in 815 CE at a meeting of the clergy in the Hagia Sophia.

  • Painting in the Late Byzantine Empire

    • This was also seen in the Theotokos of the Hagia Sophia, but in this case the architecture provides more of a place setting, as in the landscape of the Lamentation from Nerezi.

  • The Fall of Constantinople

    • Constantinople was transformed into an Islamic city: the Hagia Sophia became a mosque, and the city eventually became known as Istanbul.