Hagia Sophia
Consantinople (Istanbu). Anthemius of Tralles and Isidorus of Miletus. 532-537 C.E. Istanbul, Turkey.
Brick and ceramic elements with stone and mosaic veneer.
The interior of Hagia Sophia was paneled with costly colored marbles and ornamental stone inlays. Decorative marble columns were taken from ancient buildings and reused to support the interior arcades. Initially, the upper part of the building was minimally decorated in gold with a huge cross in a medallion at the summit of the dome
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Content:
- Longitudinal and Centrally planned Basilica
- The dome is on top of a square
- this is called pendentive
- Two half domes come from that square
- Four Minarets
- pencil minarets
- the place from which Muslims would be called to prayer when Hagia Sophia was a mosque
- The Sultan's Lodge
- The private and elevated balcony from which the Sultan would worship
- It was secluded because only certain people were allowed to talk to and interact with the Sultan.
- Mihrab
- Is off center because it faces and oreinets itself towards Mecca, but the original church was oriented in a different direction.
- Arabic Calligraphy
- The highest form of Islamic art
- takes years of training
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Context:
- Hagia Sophia, Istanbul, 532-37 (architects: Isidore of Miletus and Anthemius of Tralles)
- Formerly Constantinople, Rome
- Commissioned by Emporer Constantine
- Showcased his power as the Roman emperor.
- As the Roman Emperor, he had a lot of power within the church, one of those powers was to appoint the patriarch of the church.
- Hagia Sophia as it is today is the third version of the building because the first two were burned down during riots.
- The building of Hagia Sophia put to work many citizens who would have otherwise been rioting.
- The current dome is taller than the original dome was because the increase in height helps to better distribute the weight of the dome.
- Iconoclasm
- The reason that there aren't any images or large mosaics of biblical scenes is because of the period of Iconoclasm or opposition to images of God and Jesus.
- Arabic calligraphy
- the other reason that there are no biblical images in Hagia Sophia is because it was turned into a mosque after the sack of Constantinople.
- In mosques, the only form of art is Arabic calligraphy from the Qu'ran and geometric patterns, and so any imagery in Hagia Sophia was destroyed when it was converted into a mosque.
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Form:
- Two floors centered on a giant nave with a great domed ceiling, along with smaller domes
- Central and Longitudinally planned Basilica
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Function:
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| Vocabulary List |
1. Hagia Sophia - (n.) "holy wisdom" in Latin
2. Minarette- noun. a tall slender tower, typically part of a mosque, with a balcony from which a muezzin calls Muslims to prayer.
3. Squinch- noun. a straight or arched structure across an interior
angle of a square tower to carry a superstructure such as a dome.
4. Apse- noun. a large semicircular or polygonal recess in a church, arched or with a domed roof, typically at the eastern end, and usually containing the altar.
5. Pendentive- noun. a curved triangle of vaulting formed by the intersection of a dome with its supporting arches.
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Cross-Cultural Comparisons: Buildings that Have Changed Use:
- Parthenon
- Pantheon
- Great Mosque at Cordoba
- https://www.khanacademy.org/humanities/ap-art-history/early-europe-and-colonial-americas/medieval-europe-islamic-world/v/hagia-sophia-istanbul
- http://haemus.org.mk/hagia-sophia-facts-history-architecture/
