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Haghia Sophia

Hagia Sophia
Ayasofya (Turkish)
Ἁγία Σοφία (Greek)
Sancta Sophia (Latin)
Hagia Sophia Mars 2013.jpg
A view of Hagia Sophia, Istanbul
Hagia Sophia is located in Istanbul
Hagia Sophia
Location in Istanbul
Coordinates 41°00′31″N 28°58′48″E / 41.008548°N 28.979938°E / 41.008548; 28.979938Coordinates: 41°00′31″N 28°58′48″E / 41.008548°N 28.979938°E / 41.008548; 28.979938
Location Istanbul (historically Constantinople), Turkey
Designer Isidore of Miletus
Anthemius of Tralles
Type
Material Ashlar, brick
Length 82 m (269 ft)
Width 73 m (240 ft)
Height 55 m (180 ft)
Beginning date 532
Completion date 537; 1480 years ago (537)
External image
360° panoramic view (virtual tour)

Hagia Sophia (/ˈhɑːɡiə sˈfə/; from the Greek: Ἁγία Σοφία, [aˈʝia soˈfia], "Holy Wisdom"; Latin: Sancta Sophia or Sancta Sapientia; Turkish: Ayasofya) was a Greek Orthodox Christian patriarchal basilica (church), later an imperial mosque, and now a museum (Ayasofya Müzesi) in Istanbul, Turkey. From the date of its construction in 537 AD, and until 1453, it served as an Eastern Orthodox cathedral and seat of the Patriarch of Constantinople, except between 1204 and 1261, when it was converted by the Fourth Crusaders to a Catholic cathedral under the Latin Empire. The building was later converted into an Ottoman mosque from 29 May 1453 until 1931. It was then secularized and opened as a museum on 1 February 1935. Famous in particular for its massive dome, it is considered the epitome of Byzantine architecture and is said to have "changed the history of architecture". It remained the world's largest cathedral for nearly a thousand years, until Seville Cathedral was completed in 1520.


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