Hagia Sophia

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This beautiful building has quite a long and interesting history.
Legendary accounts say that in the year 325 AD the first basilica was built and eventually destroyed by fire in 404 AD. The church was rebuilt in 415 AD. It too was destroyed by fire, during a revolt in 532 AD. The church was again rebuilt in 537 AD, designed by famous architects with a grand dome. Twenty years later the dome collapsed. The church was then restored, with a smaller and higher dome. Since then it has been through many restorations. In 1317 the walls were fortified. Minarets were added after the conqest of the Byzentine Empire by the Turks. Butresses were built begining in 1537. Swiss architects did extensive restoration between 1847 and 1849. In 1934 Mustafa Kemal Ataturk had Hagia Sophia converted to the Ayasofya Museum. Today many mosaics are being cleaned and restorations are occuring.