Hagia Sophia

The last place I visited on my Istanbul city orientation trip was Hagia Sophia. This cathedral is beautiful remnant of Istanbul's strong cultural history as well as symbol of the times for modern Turkish politics. The former basilica and mosque is now a museum, and fittingly so as Hagia Sophia displays Istanbul's rich history from 537 C.E. to present. It was Atatürk who decided the mosque should be a museum, despite the rules of Islam stating that no mosque may be converted from being a mosque. This decision of Ataturk's demonstrates one of his many contributions to Turkish politics, the separation of church and state. The mosque was officially declared a museum in 1935.
The first thing which caught my eye, once inside of Hagia Sophia, was a yellowed looking painting high above the entrance's gigantic two story doors. The painting displayed Mary and the Christ under a cross. The guide informed me that this painting was found underneath plaster on the ceiling when the mosque was turned into a museum. In 1453, with the arrival of the Ottoman empire in Constantinople, many of the church murals were plastered over in the conversion of Hagia Sophia into a mosque by the order of Mehmed II. It is against Muslim beliefs to have pictures of people painted on mosque walls or displayed within, and the Ottomans had no use for a Christian murals anyhow. Now all over the ceiling, uncovered paintings from the pre-Ottoman era can be found.
The second thing I noticed, once further inside, was Hagia Sophias famous gigantic dome. It was commissioned by emperor Justinian the first, and is an amazing architectural achievement for its time. Hagia Sophia is actually the third “temple” to occupy the land it sits upon, and this third rendition was designed by Isidore of Miletus and Anthemius of Tralles. When I was there a scaffolding was set up for restoration. The crisscrossing bars seemed to fade to the eye before the top could be seen as the reached to the top of the dome, they emphasized just how enormous the dome really is.

Many restorations have been carried out since the time of the Ottomans conversion of Hagia Sophia. One of the most noteworthy was ordered by the sultan Abdulmacid and crafted by the architects Gaspare and Giuseppe Fossati. The restoration included a complete redesigning of the mosques interior decorations, structural repair and fortification, and the addition of some outer buildings. On July thirteenth 1849 the mosque was again opened to the public.
Mustafa Kemal later named “Atatürk” meaning “father of the Turks” was the person responsible for Hagia Sophias conversion into a museum. His face is everywhere in Turkey and on many more than one occasion I witnessed fierce pride after the mention of his name. Ataturk was the first president of Turkey and he himself fought the revolution movement against the allied occupation of Turkey following WWI after which the Republic of Turkey was founded. He brought many “radical reforms” to the republic and Hagia Sophia's transformation to a museum (against Muslim law) is a powerful example of the weight carried by Ataturk. He is thought to be largely responsible for most of Turkey’s progress in the nineteen hundreds and is remembered fondly with gigantic pictures in almost every building. The noble looking figure is always looking off into the future, with a chiseled and thoughtful look; the man had strong eyebrows as well.
We were lucky enough to be in Istanbul on the day which Ataturks death is remembered, and I sat in a hookah bar as a televised countdown to midnight ensued. Our waiter noticed that we were watching the television and imitated a tear falling from his eye and looked thoughtful. After this, he went to the back of the room, with two minutes left in the countdown, and replaced the modern music with some traditional Turkish music. After we asked many questions about the music he had put on, he brought us a copy of the CD as a gift, he was very grateful for our interest in the country of Turkey and our observance of the importance of Ataturk to the Turks.
In Greek Hagia Sophia means “Holy Wisdom”. Over the years, the various cults of wisdom provided within the domes of Hagia Sophia have changed. Even today, with its conversion into a museum, the massage of wisdom emanating from Hagia Sophia is changing. After the historical shift to Christianity and then the Ottoman shift to Muslim, now Hagia Sophia broadcasts a message of tolerance and historical recognition to all those hundreds of thousands who walk through it every year. It represents an Istanbul aware of its conglomerate history and proud of this as well. Hagia Sophia has always been one of the most astounding architectural accomplishments, and now its ideological accomplishments will transcend both Christianity and Islam alike.