June 23, 2026
The Hagia Sophia (Greek for "holy wisdom") was built between 532 and 537 by order of Justinian the Great as the cathedral of Constantinople. For more than 500 years, it was the largest church in the world. It was rebuilt after an earthquake in 994 and used as an Eastern Orthodox or a Catholic cathedral until 1453. In 1453 after the Ottoman's conquered Constantinople, Sultan Mehmed turned Hagia Sophia into a mosque and added minarets. It became known as the Aya Sofya.
The secularist government led by Kemal Ataturk turned the mosque into a museum in 1935. During World War II, the minarets housed machine guns. Over the succeeding decades, the building fell into serious disrepair, but preservationists worked to restore it from 1997 to 2006
This is my photo of the Hagia Sophia taken when we visited Istanbul in 2010 when it was still a museum. I think there were still minarets, but they are outside the boundaries of this photo.
By 2010 they had uncovered many of the early Christian mosaics on the wall that had been stuccoed over during the years the structure was a mosque. We were very excited to see them.
In 2020, Turkish President Erdogan announced that the museum would once again revert to being a mosque. This controversial decision brought on global criticism. Even UNESCO was upset. However, the government dcreed that it would be a "working mosque," open to anyone, and the Christian icons and mosaics on the walls would be protected.
In 2025, an extensive restoration project began, and a year later, we showed up in Istanbul. Here is what the Hagia Sophia looked like:
Not quite the gorgeous structure we had seen 16 years before, but I'm sure all this renovation will be worth it in the end.
The interior is cavernous and lacks the elegance of the Blue Mosque, which was built much later and basically replaced this one for centuries.
But there is a unique sense of antiquity in the structure and the decor.
Walking through the ancient building was like being on a treasure hunt. A mosaic or fresco might be hidden almost anywhere. Here is the first one we saw tucked away in the corner of one of the upper galleries: a mosaic of the Byzantine Emperor Alexander from about 912 AD.
Looking down at the main floor from the upper gallery, the view partially obscured by scaffolding.
The disks covered with Arabic script are called roundels. There are eight of these in the Hagia Sophia, each almost 25 feet in diameter and dating to the 19th century.
The central dome is covered in Islamic calligraphy.
I can imagine that when the restoration work is finished, this will be a stunning interior. Even though it is a little tired now, it is still quite beautiful.
This is another view of the balcony that looks down on the ground floor.
The upper walkway (Bob on the right):
The apse and windows of the original Christian church faced east. The mihrab replaced the altar, but you'll notice that it is just slightly off-center so that it would face exactly towards Mecca.
More mosaics! This one is the "Comnenus Mosaic" (c. 1122 AD), which shows the Virgin Mary holding the Christ Child as he raises his hand in blessing. On the left is Emperor John II Komnenos (1118-1143), and to the right is his wife, the Empress Irene of Hungary.
Here is a close-up:
In this mosaic created around 1030 AD, Christ Pantocrator sits on a throne covered in jewels, blessing with his right hand and holding bejeweled scriptures in his left. On the viewer's left is the Emperor Constantine IX Monomachos and on the right is Empress Zoe.
My favorite is this mosaic of the Virgin and Child peeking out from behind a structural support. This one dates to the 9th century.
Just in case you can't find the mosaics by yourself, there are helpful signs in English and Turkish pointing the way.
The Deёsis (meaning "supplication" or "prayer") Mosaic dates to around 1261 AD. The lower half has been partially destroyed:
Jesus is in the middle with the Virgin Mary on the viewer's left and John the Baptist on the right. (When I first looked at John the Baptist, I thought he was looking at his cell phone.)
Time to move on. Out on Sultanahmet Square, we noticed this vendor selling Philly cheesesteak sandwiches. We passed on this opportunity.
We also passed on the Pudding Shop.
Bob LOVES cats. In Turkey, and later in Greece, there is no end to the number of cats to love. In Istanbul we noticed red boxes like the one below around town--vending machines for feeding stray animals. Instructions in English say: "Insert a coin, feed the animals. Works with all coins of all countries." I guess that means you could insert a nickel or a quarter and you'd get the same outcome. Impressive. No cat needs to go hungry in Istanbul. And if Bob is around, no cat needs to be unloved either.
We walked by the Tomb of Sultan Mahmud II, who was known for modernizing the country and is known as the "Peter the Great of Turkey." The mausoleum was commissioned by his son and completed in 1840.
Next stop: the Theodosius Cistern, built between 428-443 AD during the reign of Emperor Theodosius II. Istanbul does not have adequate fresh water, and water has always been brought in from outside the city and stored in cisterns like this. It has an area of 66' x 131'. The roof is supported by 32 Corinthian-style marble columns that are about 36 feet high. The walls are 8 feet thick.
This cistern fell into disuse during the late 18th century and was completely forgotten until it was discovered during a building project in 2010. After eight years of restoration, it was opened to the public in 2018.
We were there during a two-month-long art show entitled "Yesterday and Today" by the Turkish artist Seçkin Pirim. There were a series of geometric structures that provided an unusual contrast with the 1,600-year-old Byzantine reservoir. I enjoyed the shadows cast by the art and their reflection in the water.
We saw the last piece as we re-emerged into daylight.
Time for a snack before heading to the ship. We were in Turkey during the FIFA World Cup, and it soccer paraphernelia was everywhere, including on the Coke Zero cans. Actually, I would have preferred the pomegranate Fanta that we saw an advertisement for. I looked for it everywhere and never found any.
On the other hand, ice cream was never hard to find.
We crammed into a minivan for our ride to the ship, where we would meet up with my other two sisters and their husbands.
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