Essay on Hagia Sophia

The Hagia Sophia was built in Constantinople in A.D. 532 by the emperor Justinian, who hired the renowned architects Anthemius and Isidorus to build it. It was built over an existing building built by Constantine himself. The Hagia Sophia was a very significant building of its time and one that drew attention and respect. At this time in history the Byzantines, specifically Justinian, wanted to make one message clear, that message being that the emperor of the byzantines empire,

Turkey, though once the throne of Christendom, it began a new and glorious religious history starting in 1453 with the sack of Constantinople by the Islamic Turkish forces. During the next half millennium the strong Ottoman state is primarily controlled by the Islamic Sultanate and Caliphate. Istanbul under the Ottoman Empire was a, if not the, cultural center of the Islamic world. The empire brought great wealth, knowledge and culture into the modern day lands of Turkey. Although the modern Republic tried to suppress its Ottoman past, Turkey's Islamic beginnings remain a source of great Turkish pride. Though most people can no longer access their history through original Ottoman texts it is impossible to hide the

The outside is made of white stone blocks. Inside the cathedral the masonry is filled with pieces of rough stone used in the walls to fill the cavities. The pillars, drums, and the alter wall are made out of brick. There are large paintings on the pillars stretching from the ground to the bottom of the domes.

The structural similarity between the two buildings is the large domes, which are vital point of their construction. The materials used in the concrete of the dome also varies. At its thickest point, the aggregate is travertine, then terracotta tiles, then at the very top, tufa and pumice, both porous light stones. At the very top, where the dome would be at its weakest and vulnerable to collapse, the oculus lightens the load. Hagia Sophia is an innovative hybrid of longitudinal and central architectural planning. The building is clearly dominated by the hovering form of its gigantic dome. Its idiosyncratic mixture of basilica and rotunda precludes a ring of masonry underneath the dome to provide support around its circumference, the main dome of Hagia Sophia rests instead on four pendentives that connect the base of the dome with the huge supporting piers at the four corners of the square area beneath it. The origin of the dome on pendentive is obscure, but its large-scale use at Hagia Sophia

In this essay, I will compare and contrast two different sculptures from two different contexts of art. The first being an Olmec Colossal head (monument 1), from the context of “Art of the Americas,” and the second sculpture being ahead from Rafin Kura. The head from Rafin Kura comes from the context of “Art of Africa.” Both sculptures come from two different time periods and parts of the world. They also are both made with natural materials and have their own symbolic meaning.

The dome is made of gold and glass in order to contrast with the granite and make the building more stimulating. It nearly imitates the Hagia Sophia’s dome from Byzantine architecture from the outside. The Hagia Sophia was constructed from 532-537 CE and it still today remains as one of the most prominent works of art ever. It is one of the benchmark creations for all other churches and large architectural buildings in the world, and it revolutionized architecture. So, C.J. and R.J. Hall designed the dome very similar to that of the Hagia Sophia’s in order to show that it is a unique, important building in Providence. Although, the inside design of the dome of the Old West Bank differs from that of the Hagia Sophia. There are different geometries within the dome and pendentives. The pendentive is the triangular shaped space between numerous arches and the dome. In the Old West Bank, the same rectangular geometry is in the dome as well as the pendentive. In contrast, the Hagia Sophia’s dome and pendentive have different patterns and artwork. The structure of the two buildings is the same, but the design on the inside is changed in the Old West Bank. This is probably done in order to not create too many different visuals, since it is just a bank, and since it is a much smaller

The Ottoman Empire actually began to take shape several centuries before the dawn of the early modern period. However, its complete development didn’t take place until 1453 when a Turkish conquest resulted in control of Constantinople. The Ottomans, also known as the Osmanli group of Turks, were not the original Turkish people involved in Middle Eastern affairs. The success of the Ottoman Empire rested on two main

Ever since man began building structures and settling land, art has manifested itself in our architectural creations. Whether it be to celebrate or worship a God or Gods, a grand sculpture to bury a powerful leader or remember them by, or to show a culture’s dedication to specific values, our architectural constructions have led to some of the finest art this Earth has ever seen. The Taj Mahal and Palace of Versailles are two great examples of such art. By examining each of these individually, and then comparing and contrasting them, it will become clear that no matter how different looking these buildings may be, they still serve the same purpose to the civilizations that erected them.

An important time for the Ottomans was in 1453 when the Ottomans conquered Constantinople. This was a huge mark in time when the Ottoman expansion of power on land through military force. Even though the Ottoman Empire had a maritime fleet, they concentrated majority of their strength in their land armies, along with their cannons, which helped in the conquering of Constantinople. The Ottomans also attempted to conquer Vienna but had to retreat due to the weather, leaving behind many valuable items, including coffee beans.

the most historical mosques, Hagia Sophia and the Dome of the Rock, are built for different

The manipulation of materials used by the Romans has still not been equaled to this day. This reality is surprising when considering the span of time which has passed since the completion of the Pantheon. A period of almost two thousand years has come and gone without any other dome structure equivalently matching the enormity and importance of the Pantheon. Hadrian’s commencement of the Pantheon has created one of the more “influential works in Western architectural history (Fazio, Moffett, and Lawrence). Keeping in mind the pantheon was created as a temple to commemorate all the pagan gods of ancient Rome (Alcott). At the time it was a very large undertaking and Hadrian felt that using architecture was a sufficient course of action to demonstrate his imperial prowess. The Roman Empire was outstretched over a vast expanse of land and could not sustain itself, however Hadrian used his knowledge of the lay to procure some elements for his reconstruction of the Pantheon. Literally meaning “many gods” the pantheon also served as a sundial with an oculus opening at the apex of the dome. Hadrian’s belief in pagan deities coerced him to create a grand structure suitable to express the divine influence of the gods over the Roman Empire. In fact, Hadrian’s reign produced many architectural exploits that had never been seen or even attempted before his

Architecture comes with many significant meanings, including religious significance. The Pantheon, built from 118 to 125 CE in Rome, Italy, was a temple made to worship the Roman gods and goddesses. This temple is one of the most important buildings both in history and architecture, influencing many other monuments with its form, such as The Dome of the Rock. The Dome of the Rock, built from 687 to 692 CE, was the first great Islamic building. Located in Jerusalem, it is a shrine still very significant to many religions, such as Judaism and Christianity, today. Though not resembling each other in appearance, these buildings are extremely similar, in terms of religious meaning. The Pantheon and the Dome of the Rock, through their own distinctive form and similar location backgrounds, illuminate religion as the most important factor in each society, as these monuments symbolize a sense of unification throughout the city.

One of these achievements is the Hagia Sophia; a piece of architectural genius. The Hagia Sophia was a

In many places throughout the world many buildings, monuments and sculptures have been made. Some were made centuries ago, and some were made recently. Many works of arts are significant or a great part of history. Some of the many buildings that have been made throughout time could have also been dedicated to someone or something. For example, the Arch of Titus was dedicated to Titus. Another example would be the Arc de Triomphe which was dedicated to soldiers. Many buildings can have a very significant meaning behind them, in the following essay I will be speaking about the importance of both of these works of art, which are the Arch of Titus and the Arc de Triomphe.

Because Sinan worked on the Hagia Sophia he became intimately familiar with its form and structure so its not surprising that it had an influence on much of his work. Of all his buildings,conceptually the Suleymaniye is probably the most similar to the Hagia Sophia with the basic concept of the central domed space made larger with attached semidomed spaces which in turn have smaller spaces attached topped by smaller domes. Because the dome of the Hagia Sophia was considered to be a great feat for the Christians Sinan designed the dome of the Suleymaniye to send the message that not only were Muslims just as capable but, with an even larger and higher dome, that they were superior.