ADAPTATION OF THE FUNCTION AND INTERIOR OF THE HAGIA SOPHIA CHURCH IN ITS CHANGE INTO A MOSQUE DURING THE OTTOMAN EMPIRE IN TÜRKIYE

Abstract

Hagia Sophia or in Greek Aya Sofya is currently known as a mosque which was previously a church and was once a museum. This mosque or church is a symbol of religion and power of the Byzantine empire in the 6th century in Constantinople or Istanbul. The changes that occurred to Hagia Sophia took place in 1453 when Ottoman troops under the leadership of Sultan Muhammad II succeeded in conquering Constantinople. During the Ottoman victory, the Hagia Sophia was used as a symbol of its great victory by changing the function of the Hagia Sophia into a mosque because most of the population of Constantinople was Muslim. This change was accompanied by an adjustment to the function of the space where previously a church changed its function to become a mosque. In this process of change several elements of Islamic architecture were added to adapt to its new function as a place of worship for Muslims. In this discussion we will look at the changes or adjustments that occurred in its adaptation as a Christian house of worship to an Islamic house of worship by using a comparative study, comparing it with a building with the same function, namely the Quba mosque, the first mosque built by the Prophet Muhammad SAW. How much conformity and improvement and elements must be removed, added or maintained in this building.  Sultan Muhammad II wanted to make the Hagia Sophia mosque a symbol of Ottoman power.