Hagia Sophia

Hagia Sophia was a Greek Orthodox Christian patriarchal basilica (church), later an imperial mosque, and is now a museum (Ayasofya Müzesi) in Istanbul, Turkey. It remained the world's largest cathedral for nearly a thousand years, until Seville Cathedral was completed in 1520.

When fiery Roman Emperor Justinian ordered the rebuilding of the great church of Hagia Sophia in Istanbul, he was bidding for nothing less than eternal glory, both for God and for himself. Exactly how the Romans conjured up the vast golden dome floating high above the ground has astounded architects for centuries. Modern science has only recently revealed the secret that allowed this colossal structure to survive almost 1500 years of turbulent history and earthquakes. Peel back the layers of this ancient megastructure to reveal its incredible engineering secrets, and the astonishing story of its construction.