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They say that if walls could talk each building would have a story to tell,

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but few would tell so many fascinating stories in so many different voices

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as the Hagia Sophia, or holy wisdom.

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Perched at the crossroads of continents and cultures,

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it has seen massive changes from the name of the city where it stands,

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to its own structure and purpose.

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And today, the elements from each era stand

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ready to tell their tales to any visitor who will listen.

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Even before you arrive at the Hagia Sophia, the ancient fortifications

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hint at the strategic importance of the surrounding city,

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founded as Byzantium by Greek colonists in 657 BCE.

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And successfully renamed as Augusta Antonia, New Rome and Constantinople

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as it was conquered, reconquered, destroyed and rebuilt

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by various Greek, Persian and Roman rulers over the following centuries.

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And it was within these walls that the first Megale Ekklesia, or great church,

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was built in the fourth century.

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Though it was soon burned to the ground in riots,

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it established the location for the region's main religious structure

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for centuries to come.

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Near the entrance, the marble stones with reliefs

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are the last reminders of the second church.

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Built in 415 CE, it was destroyed during the Nika Riots of 532

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when angry crowds at a chariot race

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nearly overthrew the emperor, Justinian the First.

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Having barely managed to retain power,

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he resolved to rebuild the church on a grander scale,

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and five years later, the edifice you see before you was completed.

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As you step inside, the stones of the foundation and walls

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murmur tales from their homelands of Egypt and Syria,

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while columns taken from the Temple of Artemis recall a more ancient past.

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Runic inscriptions carved by the vikings of the emperor's elite guard

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carry the lore of distant northern lands.

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But your attention is caught by the grand dome, representing the heavens.

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Reaching over 50 meters high and over 30 meters in diameter

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and ringed by windows around its base,

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the golden dome appears suspended from heaven,

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light reflecting through its interior.

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Beneath its grandiose symbolism, the sturdy reinforcing Corinthian columns,

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brought from Lebanon after the original dome was partially destroyed

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by an earthquake in 558 CE,

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quietly remind you of its fragility

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and the engineering skills such a marvel requires.

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If a picture is worth a thousand words,

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the mosaics from the next several centuries have the most to say

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not only about their Biblical themes,

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but also the Byzantine emperors who commissioned them,

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often depicted along with Christ.

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But beneath their loud and clear voices,

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one hears the haunting echoes of the damaged and missing mosaics and icons,

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desecrated and looted during the Latin Occupation in the Fourth Crusade.

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Within the floor, the tomb inscription of Enrico Dandolo,

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the Venetian ruler who commanded the campaign,

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is a stark reminder of those 57 years that Hagia Sophia spent as a Roman Catholic church

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before returning to its orthodox roots upon the Byzantine Reconquest.

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But it would not remain a church for long.

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Weakened by the Crusades, Constantinople fell to the Ottomans in 1453

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and would be known as Istanbul thereafter.

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After allowing his soldiers three days of pillage,

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Sultan Mehmed the Second entered the building.

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Though heavily damaged, its grandeur was not lost

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on the young sultan who immediately rededicated it to Allah,

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proclaiming that it would be the new imperial mosque.

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The four minarets built over the next century

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are the most obvious sign of this era,

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serving as architectural supports in addition to their religious purpose.

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But there are many others.

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Ornate candle holders relate Solomon's conquest of Hungary,

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while giant caligraphy discs hung from the ceiling

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remind visitors for the first four caliphs who followed Muhammad.

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Though the building you see today still looks like a mosque, it is now a museum,

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a decision made in 1935 by Kemal Ataturk,

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the modernizing first president of Turkey

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following the Ottoman Empire's collapse.

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It was this secularization that allowed for removal

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of the carpets hiding the marble floor decorations

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and the plaster covering the Christian mosaics.

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Ongoing restoration work has allowed the multiplicity of voices

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in Hagia Sophia's long history

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to be heard again after centuries of silence.

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But conflict remains.

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Hidden mosaics cry out from beneath Islamic calligraphy,

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valuable pieces of history that cannot be uncovered without destroying others.

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Meanwhile, calls sound from both Muslim and Christian communities

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to return the building to its former religious purposes.

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The story of the divine wisdom may be far from over,

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but one can only hope that the many voices residing there

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will be able to tell their part for years to come.