Hagia Sophia

Hagia Sophia Information and History

Hagia Sophia Museum in the city of Istanbul, Turkey, arguably is one of the most important historical relics that illustrate the development of the country’s civilization. Before it became a museum by Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, modern Turkey’s state leaders in 1935, the Hagia Sophia building or Aya Sofya, it was first built in 360 AD by the Eastern Roman Emperor Constantine.

Then Hagia Sophia became the largest church or basilica in the Eastern Roman Empire for more than 1,000 years and after 3 times rebuilt in the riots and rebellion. Hagia Sophia Basilica and then converted into the Aya Sofya mosque in 1453 AD by Fatih Sultan Mehmet, Sultan of the Ottoman Empire conquered the city of Constantinople, ending the Eastern Roman imperial power in Turkey.

There are 4 Seraph Mosques in Hagia Sophia. In Hagia Sophia there were guardian chieftains of God who had 6 wings over 4 tonnes carrying the Dome. The faces of these 4 Seraph melees were covered with plaster for 7 years during 160 years during Ottoman rule. The last person to see the faces of the Seraph angels was the Swiss architect Gaspare Fossatti who carried out the restoration work of Hagia Sophia in the 1840s. As a result of ten days of hard work, the stretchers scraped 7 times into the surface and brought out the face of one of the Seraph angels.

Hours & schedule

Hagia Sophia Museum’s visiting hours of winter schedule are 09:00-17:00 with the last entrance time of 16:00. Visiting hours of summer schedule are 09:00-19:00 with the last entrance time of 18:00.

How to get there?

The Hagia Sophia is located in Sultanahmet Square. The T1 Tram Line has a stop at Sultanahmet. If your hotel is situated in the old-town area, you can simply take the tram to Sultanahmet. Otherwise, you can take some other public transportation vehicle to connect with the T1 Tram Line and continue to Sultanahmet.