Camera: Nikon FE     Lens: Soligor 3.8-4.8/75-205mm     Film: Agfa CT100     Date: 10.10.1987

The "Red Minaret", Hagia Sophia, Istanbul, Turkey

The Hagia Sophia is one of the most important Byzantine structures in Istanbul and one of the world’s great monuments. It was built as a Christian church in the 6^th century. After the Turkish conquest of Constantinople in 1453 it became a mosque and a wooden minaret was added at the southeast corner facing the direction of Mecca, later replaced by the 60m high “Red Minaret”. In the early 1500s, three more (white) minarets were added at the other corners of the building. In 1934 Turkish Pres. Kemal Atatürk secularized the building, and in 1935 it was made into a museum. Pres. Recep Tayyip Erdoğan made the controversial decision in 2020 to convert the building back into a mosque.