Aya Sofia

The Aya Sofia was built in 537.


It's been a church, a mosque, and since 1935 a museum. This is what it looks like inside. It's ginormous.


Here's a mosaic of Madonna and Child juxtaposed with the minbar.


This is the Omphalion, the spot where emperors were coronated.


This column is very crooked, most likely because it is very old and there are earthquakes in Turkey.


Crosses can be seen through the geometric designs put over them.


The dome.


The walls have crazy, symmetric marble designs.


There are a lot of mosaics. In this first one, the Empress Zoe is depicted to the right of Christ and her husband to the left. As she had three husbands, they just scraped off the old head and put up a new one each time.





Outside the Aya Sofia but in the same complex, there are the tombs of five sultans. I think this one was my favorite.