An archaeological re-examination of the cathedral of Byzantine Constantinople, with fresh evidence about the appearance and function of the complex enabling us to reconsider what Hagia Sophia can tell us about the wider Byzantine world.

An archaeological re-examination of the cathedral of Byzantine Constantinople, with fresh evidence about the appearance and function of the complex enabling us to reconsider what Hagia Sophia can tell us about the wider Byzantine world.

Hagia Sophia, the Church of Holy Wisdom, sits majestically atop the plateau that commands the straits separating Europe and Asia. Located near the acropolis of the ancient city of Byzantium, this unparalleled structure has enjoyed an extensive and colorful history, as it has successively been transformed into a cathedral, mosque, monument, and museum. In Hagia Sophia, 1850-1950, Robert S. Nelson explores its many lives. Built from 532 to 537 as the Cathedral of Constantinople, Hagia Sophia was little studied and seldom recognized as a great monument of world art until the nineteenth century, and Nelson examines the causes and consequences of the building's newly elevated status during that time. He chronicles the grand dome's modern history through a vibrant cast of characters—emperors, sultans, critics, poets, archaeologists, architects, philanthropists, and religious congregations—some of whom spent years studying it, others never visiting the building. But as Nelson shows, they all had a hand in the recreation of Hagia Sophia as a modern architectural icon. By many means and for its own purposes, the West has conceptually transformed Hagia Sophia into the international symbol that it is today. While other books have covered the architectural history of the structure, this is the first study to address its status as a modern monument. With his narrative of the building's rebirth, Nelson captures its importance for the diverse communities that shape and find meaning in Hagia Sophia. His book will resonate with cultural, architectural, and art historians as well as with those seeking to acquaint themselves with the modern life of an inspired and inspiring building.

The church of Hagia Sophia in Trebizond, built by the emperor Manuel I Grand Komnenos (1238-63) in the aftermath of the fall of Constantinople to the Fourth Crusade, is the finest surviving Byzantine imperial monument of its period. Art and Identity in Thirteenth-Century Byzantium is the first investigation of the church in more than thirty years, and is extensively illustrated in colour and black-and-white, with many images that have never previously been published. Antony Eastmond examines the architectural, sculptural and painted decorations of the church, placing them in the context of contemporary developments elsewhere in the Byzantine world, in Seljuq Anatolia and among the Caucasian neighbours of Trebizond. Knowledge of this area has been transformed in the last twenty years, following the collapse of the Soviet Union. The new evidence that has emerged enables a radically different interpretation of the church to be reached, and raises questions of cultural interchange on the borders of the Christian and Muslim worlds of eastern Anatolia, the Caucasus and Persia. This study uses the church and its decoration to examine questions of Byzantine identity and imperial ideology in the thirteenth century. This is central to any understanding of the period, as the fall of Constantinople in 1204 divided the Byzantine empire and forced the successor states in Nicaea, Epiros and Trebizond to redefine their concepts of empire in exile. Art is here exploited as significant historical evidence for the nature of imperial power in a contested empire. It is suggested that imperial identity was determined as much by craftsmen and expectations of imperial power as by the emperor's decree; and that this was a credible alternative Byzantine identity to that developed in the empire of Nicaea.

Istanbul’s Hagia Sophia (‘Holy Wisdom’), or Ayasofya, is one of the world’s most visited buildings. Yet, few visitors have any idea of its long and complex story, or why it has always been a place where history, religion and politics collide. In July 2020, Turkish President Erdoğan set off an explosive controversy by announcing that Hagia Sophia would now be modified into a mosque. This decision provoked fierce criticism from UNESCO because Hagia Sophia was enjoying World Heritage Site benefits. The United States, the European Union, Russia and Greece all chimed in. However, Erdoğan’s action was wildly popular in Turkey, with its 99% Muslim population. Why is Hagia Sophia so important to modern Turkey? Why this provocative decision, and why now? How could all the international critics be ignored? Why does the world care so much about this old building? Why should it continue to care? This book explains President Erdoğan’s controversial decision in terms of Turkey’s national, independent and Islamic politics, and as a response to the mosque massacre in Christchurch in March 2019 when his life was threatened by the gunman. Any consideration of Hagia Sophia’s present and future also requires appreciation of the almost 1,500-year old story of this architectural marvel, from its inception as a church in 537 to its configuration as a mosque in 2020 and beyond. Because all world heritage sites depend on national management, Hagia Sophia will remain Turkey’s responsibility, but the international community is watching to ensure Turkey honours Hagia Sophia’s entire heritage, from the 6th century to the 21st century.

Examines the aesthetic principles and spiritual operations at work in Hagia Sophia. Drawing on art and architectural history, liturgy, musicology, and acoustics, explores the Byzantine paradigm of animation.

The architectural jewel of Constantinople is the church of Hagia Sophia (Holy Wisdom), constructed 532-537 CE. Although the edifice built by Justinian remains almost intact, only some of its original mosaics survive. In the first comprehensive study, Natalia Teteriatnikov describes the original mosaic program of the church and its restorations after the earthquake of 558. Drawing from decades of her personal research and scholarship on St. Sophia, the author analyzes the material and decorative components of the Justinianic mosaics that survive. She considers the architectural and theological aesthetics, as well as the social conditions that led to the production of a distinctive, aniconic mosaic program. Lavishly illustrated, the book includes a catalog of the nineteenth-century watercolors created by Gaspare Fossati--the only surviving evidence for reconstructing mosaics that are no longer extant.