HAGIA SOPHIA

The Hagia Sophia, whose name means “holy wisdom” is a domed monument originally built as a
cathedral in Constantinople in the sixth century A.D. It contains two floors centered on a giant nave (naos) that
has a great dome ceiling, along with smaller domes, towering above. (…) In its 1,400 year life-span (durată
de viață) it has served as a cathedral, mosque and now a museum. When it was first constructed,
Constantinople was the capital of the Byzantine Empire. This state, officially Christian, originally formed the
eastern half of the Roman Empire and carried on after the fall of Rome (căderea Romei).
Born out of riots
The story of the construction of the Hagia Sophia began in A.D. 532 when the Nika Riots (Răscoala
Nika), a great revolt, hit Constantinople. At the time Emperor Justinian I had been ruler of the empire for five
years and had become unpopular. The riot (răscoală) spread throughout the city and the rioters (răsculații)
chanted “Nika,” which means “victory,” and attempted to throw out Justinian by besieging (besiege – a
asedia/ siege – asediu) him in his palace. (…) After moving loyal troops into the city Justinian managed to
put down (să înăbușe) the rebellion with brute force.
In the wake of (ca rezulat al/ca urmare a) the uprising (răscoală), and on the site of a torched
church that had been called the Hagia Sophia, a new Hagia Sophia would be built. To the ancient writer Paul
the Silentiary, who lived when the cathedral was completed, the building represented a triumph for both
Justinian and Christianity (…).
Building the Hagia Sophia
To build his cathedral, Justinian turned to two men named Anthemius and Isidore the Elder. (…)They built the
Hagia Sophia in great haste (grabă), finishing it in less than six years. To put this in comparison it took nearly
a century for medieval builders to construct the Notre Dame cathedral in Paris. (…) Eventually, after some
initial problems, Anthemius and Isidore did get the domed roof (acoperiș în formă de bulb de ceapă) to
stand and it was a magnificent sight indeed. “It seems not to be founded on solid masonry (zidărie), but to be
suspended from heaven by that golden chain and so cover the space,” stated the writer Procopios.
Unfortunately this roof did not stand. It collapsed about two decades later and it fell to a man named Isidore the
Younger to build a new domed roof. It has lasted, with some repairs, nearly 1,400 years, down to the present
day. (…)
Beneath the dome are 40 windows with sunlight coming through. “The sunlight emanating from the
windows surrounding its lofty (măreață) cupola, suffusing (suffuse- a inunda) the interior and irradiating its
gold mosaics, seemed to dissolve the solidity of the walls and created an ambience of ineffable mystery“ (…).
On the completion of Hagia Sophia, Justinian is said to have remarked, ‘Solomon, I have outdone thee’.”
Imperial seating
Modern-day visitors will note that the Hagia Sophia has two levels, the ground floor and a gallery
above. The presence of the two levels may mean that people were organized according to gender and class
when services were held at the cathedral. (…) In Hagia Sophia a part of the gallery was used as an imperial
lodge (lojă imperială), from which the empress and occasionally the emperor attended (lua parte la) the
services.
This lodge wasn’t the only benefit the emperor got. Antony White writes in another chapter of the 2004
"Hagia Sophia" book that to enter the cathedral’s nave from the narthex (pronaos) there are nine doorways.
“The central or Imperial Door was reserved for the use of the emperor and his attendants (însoțitori), and
provides the most perfect approach to the interior of the church.”
Decorations and iconoclasm
The decorations within the Hagia Sophia at the time of construction were probably very simple, images
of crosses for instances. Over time this changed to include a variety of ornate mosaics. There are a number of
mosaics that have been added over the centuries, imperial portraits, images of the imperial family, images of
Christ and different emperors, those have been added since Justinian’s day. During the eighth and ninth
centuries A.D., there was a period of iconoclasm in the Byzantine Empire that resulted in some of the mosaics
being destroyed. The controversy spanned (a cuprins) roughly a century, during the years 726–87 and 815–
43. (…) At the end of this period decoration of the interior of Hagia Sophia resumed (s-a reluat), each
emperor adding their own images. One of the most well-known mosaics is located on the apse (pl:
apsides/rom: absidă) of the church showing a 13-foot-tall (4 meters) Virgin Mary with Jesus as a child.
Conversion to mosque
Another chapter in the Hagia Sophia’s life began in 1453. In that year the Byzantine Empire ended, with
Constantinople capitulating to the armies of Mehmed II, sultan of the Ottoman Empire.
The Byzantine Empire had been in decline for centuries and by 1453 the Hagia Sophia had fallen into disrepair
(…) Nevertheless, the Christian cathedral made a strong impression on the new Ottoman rulers and they
decided to convert it into a mosque. (…) Outside the church, four minarets (minarete) would eventually be
added. Changes occurred on the inside as well. After the Ottoman conquest the mosaics were hidden under
yellow paint with the exception of the Theotokos [Virgin Mary with child] in the apse. In addition, Monograms of
the four caliphs were put on the pillars flanking (a flanca) the apse and the entrance of the nave. The style of
the Hagia Sophia, in particular its dome, would go on to influence Ottoman architecture, most notably in the
development of the Blue Mosque, built in Istanbul during the 17th century. In 1934, the government of Turkey
secularized the Hagia Sophia and turned it into a museum.
Adapted from Owen Jarus, LiveScience.com

I. In your own words, answer the following questions:

1) Explain the reasons behind the construction of Hagia Sophia

2) What happened to the cathedral after the fall of the Byzantine Empire?

3) Explain the term iconoclasm based on information from the text.

II. Translate the following sentences into English

1) Catedrala Sfânta Sofia ( “Sfânta Înțelepciune”) a reprezentat centrul vieții religioase a Imperiului Bizantin timp
de 916 ani. După cucerirea turcă a fost transformata in moschee timp de 482 de ani, iar după anul 1935 a devenit
muzeu.

2) Biserica veche a fost distrusă și incendiată în cursul revoltei Nika impotriva împăratului Justinian din anul 532.

3) După înăbușirea revoltei prin forță, împăratul a decis să construiască o catedrală măreață.

4) În secolul XIII, în anul 1204, Sfânta Sofia a fost jefuită de nobilii creștini apuseni, în timpul Cruciadei a IV-a.

5) Ca urmare a capitulării Constantinopolului în fața armatelor otomane, Sultanul Mahomed, a dat ordin ca Sfânta
Sofia să fie transformată în moschee.

6) Iconoclasmul a fost o mișcare socială, politică și religioasă din

sec. VIII-IX, în Imperiul Bizantin, care, sub forma
luptei împotriva cultului icoanelor, a fost îndreptată împotriva aristocrației laice și ecleziastice