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Hagia Sophia, Istanbul

Elisabeth Yorck von Wartenburg
April 6, 2018

The Hagia Sophia, with its massive dome and four minarets, is nearly 1,500 years old. Today the former church and later mosque is a museum.

https://p.dw.com/p/1Gs67

The "Holy Wisdom", which is what Hagia Sophia means, with its impressive interior decorations, is regarded as the eighth wonder of the world. The first basilica was already completed in the year 360. The building therefore witnessed nearly the entire history of Constantinople and became a symbol both for the Byzantine golden age and of the city of Istanbul. It's decorations and construction cost some 140 tons of gold. In 1934 the Hagia Sophia was turned into a museum.

Elisabeth Yorck
Elisabeth Yorck von Wartenburg Author, editor, planner, social media manager