Paradox
• a statement or proposition that seems self-contradictory or absurd but in reality expresses a possible truth.
Hagia Sophia is a paradox…
• square and round• It was a church and a mosque• Represents Rome and Jerusalem
Why Square?
• Basilica - a large and important church that has been given special ceremonial rites by the Pope
Why Round?
• Idea of the dome represents Rome
• Circles are infinite…
• Maybe it is a halo…
Church…
• In 532…a few days after the destruction
of the second basilica, Emperor Justinian I built Hagia Sophia, larger and more majestic than its predecessors.
Withstood earthquakes and stood for 1000 years
Mosque…
1453 Sultan Mehmed laid siege to Constantinople
- Pillaged for 3 days…
- Hagia Sophia- Valuable items- Refuge place- Converted to Mosque
Hagia Sophia
http://videos.howstuffworks.com/howstuffworks/40471-the-coolest-stuff-on-the-planet-hagia-sophia-video.htm
Now it’s a museum…
How does this mosaic symbolize the Byzantine Empire?
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