Turkish presidential spokesperson Ibrahim Qalan said that the historical and religious value of Hagia Sophia will be preserved and available to visitors of all religions with its mosaics, arts, Christian icons, drawings and lines in the place which is one of the UNESCO World Heritage sites.
They said in his meeting with the BBC that Orthodox Christians would be able to visit their religious icons, which will be preserved in Hagia Sophia, like all people of different religions.
Hagia Sophia mosaic
Hagia Sophia is filled with many Christian motifs and Islamic writings, which date to its distinctive history and transformations, and the interior of the dome walls retain many architectural motifs and Christian religious symbols, along with many Islamic texts written in Arabic and Ottoman lines.
All is welcome to visit the Ayasofya Mosque to enjoy its splendor as a house of worship and historical cultural site. pic.twitter.com/9wvBVQhMLH
- Ibrahim Kalin (@ ikalin1) July 11, 2020
Christian mosaics and Orthodox icons were destroyed during the reign of the Byzantine Emperor Constantine V (718-775), who forbidden the images severely, and considered that the divine nature could not be depicted; Before it was redecorated again in the middle of the 9th century AD.
After the conquest of Constantinople in 1453 AD, Sultan Mehmed the Conqueror preserved the mosaic of Hagia Sophia, including Christian depictions of "Maryam", "Christ" and "John the Baptist", and in 1847, the Ottoman Sultan commissioned Abdel Majid the Swiss architects and the two brothers Gaspard and Giuseppe Fossati Restored the Hagia Sophia and restored the decoration, they completed the restoration within two years, with hundreds of workers employed to document the sites of ancient Byzantine mosaics.
Following the Turkish judiciary’s decision to cancel the Cabinet’s decision of 1934, which decided to convert “Hagia Sophia” in Istanbul from a mosque to a museum; The debate about the fate of the mosaics has returned once more, with Hagia Sophia turning again to a mosque and a place of worship for Muslims, as well as continuing as one of the most important tourist and historical sites in Istanbul.
Preparing for the opening of the mosque
With the announcement of the Turkish court decision, preparations for the grand opening of the Hagia Sophia Mosque began on July 24, coinciding with the anniversary of the Treaty of Lausanne 1923, which paved the way for the founding of the Turkish Republic.
According to the Turkish newspaper Yeni Safak, feverish work began in preparation for the Hagia Sophia prayer instrument, and it was decided to use lighting technology to black out Christian frescoes, mosaics, and religious symbols in black light during prayer times, while Christian drawings appear at other times not devoted to worship.
The Presidency of Religious Affairs announced the appointment of two imams and 4 muezzins to the Hagia Sophia Mosque, and confirmed that the Qur’an will be recited in the mosque for 24 hours, and prayer rugs will remain streamlined throughout, while observing the health rules associated with the prevention of the Corona pandemic.
The Turkish newspaper Sabah reported that a wide study has been conducted on how to use the Hagia Sophia as a mosque without damaging the mosaics, frescoes and icons, and a formula will be developed that will not disrupt the fact that the Hagia Sophia is an open mosque for worship at prayer times, and a place for tourism at the same time.
Christian frescoes and mosaics will be available to tourists outside of prayer times, and tourists will be able to visit Hagia Sophia for free.
Special tourist corridors will be established, so that tourists will not find any difficulty while visiting the place, and carpets with anti-bacterial properties will be installed, specially designed for Hagia Sophia.
The head of religious affairs, Ali Arbash, commented on the opening of the Hagia Sophia, saying that the Hagia Sophia has important symbolic meanings for the entire Islamic world, stressing that welcoming worshipers and visitors to the Hagia Sophia as a place of worship, a school and a lecture square.
Notre Dame
The Turkish newspaper Milli Gazette said that the opening of the Hagia Sophia as a place of worship and a mosque will not diminish its global heritage and human historical identity, as tourists can visit the Hagia Sophia as they visit the Notre Dame churches in Paris and other historical churches in Europe.
Hagia Sophia remained a center of Orthodox Christianity until 1453 CE, when Ottoman Turks conquered the city under the rule of Sultan Mehmed II, known as Al-Fatih, and after 916 years of being a church, it turned into a mosque mosque symbolizing victory and conquest. Nevertheless, the church's distinctive mosaic was not destroyed, the Christian paintings and icons were covered with gypsum, and it appeared again after the church's restoration in the 20th century.
Old transformations
The first Friday prayer was held in Hagia Sophia after the conquest of Constantinople, and it used a mosque for 482 years, and it was considered the jewel of the Islamic world, known as the "Great Mosque".
Hagia Sophia’s cultural and political transformations over the centuries do not seem different from its architectural transformations. The first minaret of the structure of the church was added in 1481 AD, and another minaret was erected during the reign of Sultan Bayezid II, who assumed the throne after the conquering Sultan, and destroyed a major earthquake in Istanbul in 1509 the first minaret To adopt another instead.
Two new minarets were built during the reconstruction and restoration work undertaken by the architect Sinan during the reign of Sultan Selim II, which is why the four Hagia Sophia minarets built at different times differ from each other.
Selim II's tomb became the first royal tomb in Hagia Sophia, which also includes 43 tombs of Sultans, their wives, and princes. In 1739, a school, library, and kitchen were added to the mosque. Hagia Sophia, which was closed during renovations between 1847 and 1849, was opened as a mosque for the penultimate time in 1849.