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Hagia Sophia
Hagia Sophia, Turkish Ayasofya, Latin Sancta Sophia, also called Church of the Holy Wisdom or Church of the Divine Wisdom, an important Byzantine structure in Istanbul and one of the world’s great monuments. It was built as a Christian church in the 6th century CE (532–537) under the direction of the Byzantine emperor Justinian I. In subsequent centuries it became a mosque, a museum, and a mosque again. The building reflects the religious changes that have played out in the region over the centuries, with the minarets and inscriptions of Islam as well as the lavish mosaics of Christianity.
The Blue Mosque
The Sultanahmet Mosque was built between 1609 and 1617 and is also known as the Blue Mosque because of the blue tiles used to decorate the walls of its interior. The Sultan Ahmed Mosque has one main dome, six minarets, and eight secondary domes. The design is the culmination of two centuries of Ottoman mosque development. It incorporates some Byzantine Christian elements of the neighboring Hagia Sophia with traditional Islamic architecture and is considered to be the last great mosque of the classical period. The architect, Sedefkâr Mehmed Ağa, synthesized the ideas of his master Sinan, aiming for overwhelming size, majesty and splendour.
Chora Church
Part of a monastery which dates back to the 6th century, the Chora Mosque (formerly Church-Museum), Kariye in Turkish, is one of the most impressive historical sites in Istanbul. Chora houses very beautiful examples of Byzantine mosaics and frescos. “Chora” means “Rural Area” in Greek. According to the record, there had been a chapel outside the ramparts of the area. The first Chora Church was built in the 6th century in the era of Justinianos (527-565), and instead of this chapel. Chora Church was used as the court chapel for the religious ceremonies during the Komnenos era.
Suleymaniye Mosque
The Suleymaniye Mosque is an Ottoman imperial mosque located on the Third Hill of Istanbul, Turkey. The mosque was commissioned by Suleiman the Magnificent and designed by the imperial architect Mimar Sinan. An inscription specifies the foundation date as 1550 and the inauguration date as 1557. Behind the qibla wall of the mosque is an enclosure containing the separate octagonal mausoleums of Suleiman the Magnificent and that of his wife Hurrem Sultan (Roxelana). For 462 years, the Suleymaniye Mosque was the largest mosque in the city, until it was surpassed by the Camlica Mosque in 2019. The Suleymaniye Mosque is one of the best-known sights of Istanbul, and from its location on the Third Hill, it commands a spectacular view of the city around the Golden Horn.