The first thing that strikes the mind about Istanbul is Hagia Sophia. It was once a Greek Orthodox Christian cathedral, later an Ottoman imperial mosque and now a museum. Hagia Sophia is famous because it respects both the Christian and Muslim religion. It was an architectural masterpiece built during AD 537 and is famous for its huge dome.
The Hagia Sophia
Hagia Sophia is a world heritage site by UNESCO since 1985. Hagia Sophia means ”Holy Wisdom” in Greek language and English, it means ”Shrine of The Holy of God”. It took exactly 5 years, 10 months and 4 days to construct this masterpiece. It was a mosque for 482 years, 916 years as a church and a museum since 1935.
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Tickets
1 € ~ 6.2 Turkish Lira(TL)
1. Regular ticket – It costs 100TL per person and the tickets are available at the ticket counter near the entrance or even online.
2. Skip the queue ticket – It costs 149.39 TL per person. Book your respective slots on the Museum website and meet your host at the entrance.
For this ticket, you have to download the audio guide app on your smartphone and the download instructions are mentioned in the confirmation. Once downloaded, you do not need an internet connection to use this app inside the museum. And also headphones are not provided so don’t forget to carry personal earphones or headphones.
Note: There is no wifi inside Hagia Sophia so better download the app before you enter the museum.
Timings
The museum is open to the public from Tuesday to Sunday from 9.00 am – 6.00 pm. The timings vary during summer and winter period. Check the Museum website for confirmation. It is closed on Monday.
Best time to visit
There are 2 separate queues: the ticket and the security check queue. There is a thorough security check at the entrance before you buy the tickets. So it is advised visiting the site in morning before 10.00 am because the lines get very long as the day progresses just like the queue for the Vatican City Church.
The queue at 8.30 am
Inside Hagia Sophia
Hagia Sophia is a symbol of harmony, peace and tolerance in Turkey. The walls of Hagia Sophia are a perfect blend of Islamic arts and symbols of Christianity. Some of the elements that are worth mentioning are the Dome, Mosaics, Marble door and the Mahmut I’s Library.
Inside Hagia Sophia
Mosaics
Hagia Sophia is an example of Byzantine architecture and mosaics are an important element in this style of architecture. Mosaics are almost everywhere inside the museum. These depict the Virgin Mary, saints, Jesus and emperors. The famous mosaic arts are the ”Mosaic of the Apse”, ”Mosaic above the Imperial Door”, ”Mosaic of Empress Zoe” and ”Mosaic of Komnenos”.
The main entrance and the Imperial Door mosaic art on top of the door.
Dome
The museum is famous because of the dome and sits right at the centre. The dome is built with mortar & brick. It is 102 ft in diameters and is 182 ft high.
The famous dome
Marble door
This door is located on the upper floor. It is also called the door of Heaven and Hell. The marble door was used by members to enter and exit to the meeting chamber.
The Marble Door
Mahmut I’s Library
The library is also located on the upper floor. It is a rectangular room and the walls are decorated with marble. It has a total of 6 pillars and covered with bronze grills. The library has a total capacity of 5000 books.
The Mahmut I’s library (Sourced from the internet)
After Hagia Sophia, we visited the famous Grand Bazaar, Spice Bazaar, Galata Bridge, Galata Tower and also enjoyed the refreshing Turkish bath.
My experience
We visited at the wrong time because there was a major restoration going on. Major parts of the museum were covered in huge curtains and we could barely see the fine mosaic art. It was very dusty and did not look as appealing as we heard it be. Disappointed..!!
Overall experience: out of 5.
Time of visit: November 2019
”Travel is more than sight-seeing; it is a change that goes on, deep and permanent – Miriam Beard”
