Hagia Sophia

Name of structure: Hagia Sophia
Extended name of structure:
Type of structure: Church
Country or main area: Turkey
Region within country or main area: Marmara
City or area within region: Constantinople
Date of structure: 532-37
Century of structure 1: 6 AD
Century of structure 2: 6 AD
Specific place of mosaic: Apse; south gallery; north gallery; tympanum; narthex; west entrance.
Brief descriptive contents of mosaic:

Apse: Virgin and Christ child.
Sanctuary vault: archangel
South gallery: Panel with Christ, Constantine IX Monomachos, Zoe; panel with Virgin and Christ child, Eirene, John II Komnenos, Alexios Komnenos; panel of Deesis.
North gallery: Alexander
Tympanum: John Chrysostom and Ignatius the Younger.
Inner narthex: above west entrance: Christ enthroned, unknown emperor, medallions of the Virgin and of angel; crosses.  
Vestibule lunette above entrance to narthex: Virgin and Christ child, Justinian & Constantine.
Geometrical and floral patterns throughout.
Date of mosaic:

Apse: 9C.
Sanctuary vault: pre-9C.
South gallery: Panel with Christ, Constantine IX Monomachos, Zoe: 11C; panel with Virgin and Christ child, Eirene, John II Komnenos, Alexios Komnenos: 12C; panel of Deesis: 13C.
North gallery: 912-13.
Tympanum: 9C.
Inner narthex: above west entrance: 9C/10C; crosses 9C .
Vestibule lunette above entrance to narthex: 10C.
Century of mosaic 1: 6 AD
Century of mosaic 2: 6 AD
Silver tessera at site: Yes
Gold tessera at site: Yes
Colour tessera at site: Yes
Were other materials found at site (i.e., glass cakes)?
Has analysis been done? Yes
Samples taken from where? Apse and Zoe panel (Brill, 1999; Moropoulou et al, 2002)
Excavation and restoration campaigns:

1847-49: team led by the Fossati brothers
after 1894 earthquake
after 1910: team from the General Directorate of Pious Foundations. Also known as the 'Vakif (Foundation) intervention'
1932-50: team led by T. Whittemore
1960s: Dirimtekin
1992- : Istanbul Restorasyon ve Koruma Merkez Laboratuvari (Central Laboratory of Restoration and Conservation in Istanbul) initiated a restoration and conservation program in cooperation with an international team supported by UNESCO


 
Bibliography of mainly technical resources:

Atti del convegno di studi di Scienza e Beni Culturali 18, 2002: I mosaici. Cultura, Tecnologia, Conservazione (Bressanone 2-5 luglio, 2002), ed by G. Biscontin & G. Driussi (Venice: Edizioni Arcadia Ricerche, 2002):
-Moropoulou, A., Bakolas, A., Giannoulaki, M. & Karoglou, M., 'Characterisation of dome mosaics of Hagia Sophia in Constantinople', 225-36.
-Moropoulou, A., Avedelis, N. P., Delegou, E. T., Gill, C. & Smith, J., ‘Study of deterioration mechanisms of vitreous tesserae mosaics’, 843-51.


Brill, R., Chemical Analysis of Early Glasses, 2 vols (New York: Corning Museum of Glass, 1999), IX B, vol 1, 105.


Berzobohaty, P. et al, 'Hagia Sophia, Istanbul, Turkey - The Conservation of the Dome Mosaics- Report on the Conservation of the Northwest Quarter', September/October 1999. Joint UNESCO / Central Laboratory for Restoration and Conservation Project - Unpublished Report, 5.


Ozil, R., 'The conservation of the dome mosaics of Hagia Sophia', in Light on Top of the Black Hill, ed by G. Arsebuk, M. J. Mellink & W. Schirmer (Istanbul: Ege Yayinlari, 1998), 543-52.


Teteriatnikov, N. B., Mosaics of Hagia Sophia, Istanbul: The Fossati Restoration and the Work of the Byzantine Institute (Dumbarton Oaks Research Library and Collection, Washington, D.C., 1998).


Berzobohaty, P. et al, 'Hagia Sophia, Istanbul, Turkey - The Conservation of the Dome Mosaics - Sixth Report - Completion of the Pilot Conservation Programme'. October/November 1997. Joint UNESCO / Central Laboratory for Restoration and Conservation Project - Unpublished Report 1997, 6.


Eyice, S., 'Ayasofya', Dünden Bugüne Istanbul Ansiklopedisi 1 (1993), Kültür Bakanligi ve Tarih Vakfi, 455.


Berzobohaty, P. et al, 'Hagia Sophia Dome Mosaics - Conservation Project - Preliminary Report', July 1993 Joint UNESCO / Central Laboratory for Restoration and Conservation Project - Unpublished Report 1993, 3.


Berzobohaty, P. et al, 'Hagia Sophia Dome Mosaics - Conservation Project - Second Interim Report', November 1993 Joint UNESCO / Central Laboratory for Restoration and Conservation Project - Unpublished Report 1993, 2-4.


Cormack, R. & Hawkins, E. J. W., 'The mosaics of St Sophia at Istanbul: the rooms above the southwest vestibule and ramp', DOP 31 (1977), 175-251.


Mango, C. & Hawkins, E. J. W., ‘The mosaics of St. Sophia at Istanbul. The church fathers in the north tympanum’, DOP 26 (1972), 1-41.


Hawkins,  E. J. W., ‘Further observations on the narthex mosaic in St. Sophia at Istanbul’, DOP 22 (1968), 151+153-66.


Mango, M. & Hawkins, E. J. W., ‘The apse mosaics of St. Sophia at Istanbul. Report on work carried out in 1964’, DOP 19 (1965),  113+115-51.


Mango, C.,  Materials for the study of the mosaics of St. Sophia at Istanbul (Dumbarton Oaks Studies, VIII)  (Washington, D.C., 1962), 63-6.


Swainson, Harold and William Richard Lethaby, The Church of Sancta Sophia, Constantinople (London: Macmillan & Co., 1894


Underwood, P. A. & Hawkins, E. J. W., ‘The mosaics of Hagia Sophia at Istanbul: the portrait of the emperor Alexander: a report on work done by the Byzantine Institute in 1959 and 1960’, Dop 15 (1961), 187-217.  


Underwood, P. A., 'A preliminary report on some unpublished mosaics in Hagia Sophia', American Journal of Archaeology 55 (1951), 367-70.


Whittemore, T., ‘On the Dating of Some Mosaics in Hagia Sophia’, The Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin, New Series 5/1 (1946), 34-45.


Whittemore, T., ‘The mosaics of St. Sophia at Istanbul’, American Journal of Archaeology, 42/ 2 (1938), 218-26.
URLs: http://www.tayproject.org/TAYBizansMar.fm$Retrieve?YerlesmeNo=20039&html=bizansdetaile.html&layout=web
Comments: Analysis being carried out by team in 2010.

Previous Next