Hagia Sophia - part II / Istanbul

Hagia Sophia means "Divine Wisdom". According to a legend: In the year 325, Constantine erected the first basilica which was devastated by a fire in the year 404. In 415, Theodosius II reconstructed the church, but it was burned down during the Nika Revolt in 532.

The current building was originally constructed as a church between 532 and 537 on the orders of the Byzantine Emperor Justinian and was the third Church of the Holy Wisdom to occupy the site, the previous two having both been destroyed by rioters. It was designed by the Greek scientists Isidore of Miletus, a physicist, and Anthemius of Tralles, a mathematician.

Famous in particular for its massive dome, it is considered the epitome of Byzantine architecture and is said to have "changed the history of architecture

more information