On our second night we went to a performance of the Whirling Dervishes. The dancers originated as part of a religious order that is now banned in Turkey, but the government decided to maintain the performances because they are such a tourist attraction. The dance itself was originally a type of trance to put the actor in a meditative state. Watching them, it was incredible the amount of balance and stamina they had as they twirled around for several minutes at a time, staying in the same place without losing balance.
After warming up for a bit in a cafe we made our way to the Basilica Cistern. Also built under Emperor Justinian (so in the 530s), it is a huge underground reservoir with 336 marble columns supporting a space that could hold over 21,000,000 gallons of water. The fact that it is still largely intact is impressive, and the way it is lit today makes it really atmospheric (apparently it was featured in the James Bond film From Russia with Love).
After the Blue Mosque we made our way over to Hagia Sophia across the street, the most important monument of the Byzantine empire. Called the church of Holy Wisdom, Hagia Sophia was originally built by Emperor Justinian in the 530s. Quite the unpopular emperor coming off the massacre of most of his enemies, Justinian decided he needed to do a little PR for himself, and so he commissioned a church to rival all that had come before it, including Old St Peter's in the west. His architects designed something that was revolutionary in concept, remarkable in ornament, and unprecedented in scale. It was the largest church in Christendom (until New St Peters in the 16th century), and had the largest dome in the world (until Brunelleschi's Duomo in Florence). This is especially remarkable considering that at this time the only thing being produced in the west were small and drafty churches with wooden ceilings.
View of Hagia Sophia from the courtyard of the Blue Mosque
When the Ottomans overtook Constantinople in 1453 (changing the city's name to Istanbul), the church was converted to a mosque, and these minarets were added. Now a museum, it is the most interesting blend of Christian and Islamic design.
Given its age and long history, the building is constantly under restoration
The central dome. When built, it was the largest since the Pantheon in antiquity, nearly 400 years prior. It spans roughly 100 feet in diameter and rests 180 feet above ground. The scale of the dome was made possible by the innovation of the pendentive, the upside down triangular shapes on either side of the picture. In essence, these elements allowed a circular peg to be placed on a square hole. There are 40 windows that encircle the base of the dome, making it seemingly float by divine will. The kufic script in the center was added during the church's transformation into a mosque, but the gold mosaic is original.
View of the Qibla wall and mihrab niche. Before it was transformed into a mosque this would have been the altar wall.
View of an uncovered mosaic above the altar/Qibla wall
I think this is why the kitties in Istanbul are such survivors-- they're so clever! These two were bathing in the warm light near the mihrab.
Ramp leading to the upper gallery
View from the upper gallery
The round green and gold calligraphy plaques were added when the church was transformed into a mosque
They are huge!
Many of the capitals on the columns have the carved insignia of emperor Justinian and his wife Theodora
When the building was converted, the Ottomans whitewashed and covered up many of the surfaces. Restoration attempts have been made to uncover the original mosaics (as evident here), but it is slow-going, and there is enormous irreversible damage. Imagine though, rather than the painted yellow surface seen here (done in the 19th century to evoke the design and colors of the original mosaics), how the interior would have looked with every surface gleaming in brilliant gold mosaic.
Remarkably, a few figurative images have been uncovered
View of the Blue Mosque from a window on the upper gallery
