0:00:06.391,0:00:10.752 They say that if walls could talk each building would have a story to tell, 0:00:10.752,0:00:15.843 but few would tell so many fascinating stories in so many different voices 0:00:15.843,0:00:19.384 as the Hagia Sophia, or holy wisdom. 0:00:19.384,0:00:21.815 Perched at the crossroads of continents and cultures, 0:00:21.815,0:00:25.510 it has seen massive changes from the name of the city where it stands, 0:00:25.510,0:00:27.990 to its own structure and purpose. 0:00:27.990,0:00:30.692 And today, the elements from each era stand 0:00:30.692,0:00:34.011 ready to tell their tales to any visitor who will listen. 0:00:34.011,0:00:38.403 Even before you arrive at the Hagia Sophia, the ancient fortifications 0:00:38.403,0:00:41.393 hint at the strategic importance of the surrounding city, 0:00:41.393,0:00:46.357 founded as Byzantium by Greek colonists in 657 BCE. 0:00:46.357,0:00:50.811 And successfully renamed as Augusta Antonia, New Rome and Constantinople 0:00:50.811,0:00:54.398 as it was conquered, reconquered, destroyed and rebuilt 0:00:54.398,0:00:59.740 by various Greek, Persian and Roman rulers over the following centuries. 0:00:59.740,0:01:04.396 And it was within these walls that the first Megale Ekklesia, or great church, 0:01:04.396,0:01:06.494 was built in the fourth century. 0:01:06.494,0:01:08.746 Though it was soon burned to the ground in riots, 0:01:08.746,0:01:11.822 it established the location for the region's main religious structure 0:01:11.822,0:01:13.963 for centuries to come. 0:01:13.963,0:01:16.470 Near the entrance, the marble stones with reliefs 0:01:16.470,0:01:19.127 are the last reminders of the second church. 0:01:19.127,0:01:24.306 Built in 415 CE, it was destroyed during the Nika Riots of 532 0:01:24.306,0:01:26.326 when angry crowds at a chariot race 0:01:26.326,0:01:29.593 nearly overthrew the emperor, Justinian the First. 0:01:29.593,0:01:31.718 Having barely managed to retain power, 0:01:31.718,0:01:35.059 he resolved to rebuild the church on a grander scale, 0:01:35.059,0:01:39.819 and five years later, the edifice you see before you was completed. 0:01:39.819,0:01:42.966 As you step inside, the stones of the foundation and walls 0:01:42.966,0:01:46.573 murmur tales from their homelands of Egypt and Syria, 0:01:46.573,0:01:51.860 while columns taken from the Temple of Artemis recall a more ancient past. 0:01:51.860,0:01:55.226 Runic inscriptions carved by the vikings of the emperor's elite guard 0:01:55.226,0:01:57.641 carry the lore of distant northern lands. 0:01:57.641,0:02:02.696 But your attention is caught by the grand dome, representing the heavens. 0:02:02.696,0:02:06.954 Reaching over 50 meters high and over 30 meters in diameter 0:02:06.954,0:02:09.589 and ringed by windows around its base, 0:02:09.589,0:02:12.348 the golden dome appears suspended from heaven, 0:02:12.348,0:02:15.013 light reflecting through its interior. 0:02:15.013,0:02:19.253 Beneath its grandiose symbolism, the sturdy reinforcing Corinthian columns, 0:02:19.253,0:02:22.914 brought from Lebanon after the original dome was partially destroyed 0:02:22.914,0:02:25.651 by an earthquake in 558 CE, 0:02:25.651,0:02:27.691 quietly remind you of its fragility 0:02:27.691,0:02:31.278 and the engineering skills such a marvel requires. 0:02:31.278,0:02:34.337 If a picture is worth a thousand words, 0:02:34.337,0:02:37.416 the mosaics from the next several centuries have the most to say 0:02:37.416,0:02:39.890 not only about their Biblical themes, 0:02:39.890,0:02:42.964 but also the Byzantine emperors who commissioned them, 0:02:42.964,0:02:45.438 often depicted along with Christ. 0:02:45.438,0:02:47.481 But beneath their loud and clear voices, 0:02:47.481,0:02:51.845 one hears the haunting echoes of the damaged and missing mosaics and icons, 0:02:51.845,0:02:56.131 desecrated and looted during the Latin Occupation in the Fourth Crusade. 0:02:56.131,0:02:59.933 Within the floor, the tomb inscription of Enrico Dandolo, 0:02:59.933,0:03:02.382 the Venetian ruler who commanded the campaign, 0:03:02.382,0:03:08.109 is a stark reminder of those 57 years that Hagia Sophia spent as a Roman Catholic church 0:03:08.109,0:03:13.009 before returning to its orthodox roots upon the Byzantine Reconquest. 0:03:13.009,0:03:15.227 But it would not remain a church for long. 0:03:15.227,0:03:19.873 Weakened by the Crusades, Constantinople fell to the Ottomans in 1453 0:03:19.873,0:03:22.452 and would be known as Istanbul thereafter. 0:03:22.452,0:03:24.828 After allowing his soldiers three days of pillage, 0:03:24.828,0:03:27.474 Sultan Mehmed the Second entered the building. 0:03:27.474,0:03:30.579 Though heavily damaged, its grandeur was not lost 0:03:30.579,0:03:33.866 on the young sultan who immediately rededicated it to Allah, 0:03:33.866,0:03:37.326 proclaiming that it would be the new imperial mosque. 0:03:37.326,0:03:39.462 The four minarets built over the next century 0:03:39.462,0:03:41.571 are the most obvious sign of this era, 0:03:41.571,0:03:45.669 serving as architectural supports in addition to their religious purpose. 0:03:45.669,0:03:47.128 But there are many others. 0:03:47.128,0:03:50.750 Ornate candle holders relate Solomon's conquest of Hungary, 0:03:50.750,0:03:53.283 while giant caligraphy discs hung from the ceiling 0:03:53.283,0:03:57.625 remind visitors for the first four caliphs who followed Muhammad. 0:03:57.625,0:04:02.666 Though the building you see today still looks like a mosque, it is now a museum, 0:04:02.666,0:04:06.698 a decision made in 1935 by Kemal Ataturk, 0:04:06.698,0:04:08.798 the modernizing first president of Turkey 0:04:08.798,0:04:11.608 following the Ottoman Empire's collapse. 0:04:11.608,0:04:15.158 It was this secularization that allowed for removal 0:04:15.158,0:04:17.863 of the carpets hiding the marble floor decorations 0:04:17.863,0:04:20.639 and the plaster covering the Christian mosaics. 0:04:20.639,0:04:24.614 Ongoing restoration work has allowed the multiplicity of voices 0:04:24.614,0:04:26.490 in Hagia Sophia's long history 0:04:26.490,0:04:29.336 to be heard again after centuries of silence. 0:04:29.336,0:04:31.071 But conflict remains. 0:04:31.071,0:04:34.471 Hidden mosaics cry out from beneath Islamic calligraphy, 0:04:34.471,0:04:38.966 valuable pieces of history that cannot be uncovered without destroying others. 0:04:38.966,0:04:42.653 Meanwhile, calls sound from both Muslim and Christian communities 0:04:42.653,0:04:45.930 to return the building to its former religious purposes. 0:04:45.930,0:04:49.203 The story of the divine wisdom may be far from over, 0:04:49.203,0:04:52.624 but one can only hope that the many voices residing there 0:04:52.624,0:04:55.704 will be able to tell their part for years to come.