The Hagia Sophia (in Greek Ἁγία Σοφία) is one of the most famous churches in all of Christendom. Prior to the building of Saint Peters in Rome, it was the Christian church. The current iteration built by the Emperor Justinian in the 7th century served as the center for Christendom until its fall to the Muslim Turks in the 15th century. For 500 years, it served as a mosque until Atatürk turned it into a state museum.
The Hagia Sophia is one of the greatest landmarks in history and merits an extensive visit. In fact, I spent 24 hours on a train from Romania to Istanbul just for the opportunity to walk through its halls and visit its famed dome. However, travel is a bit extensive. Here is an exceptional 3D, interactive tour of the Hagia Sophia. Don’t worry about the Greek on the website (unless you happen to know modern Greek). The information in the tour itself is actually english. You can pan, zoom, turn, examine close-ups, etc. It takes a minute to load, so be patient! If you really enjoy Byzantine history, I highly recommend that you follow @Byzantinephil on Twitter
If you’re interested in other interactive museum exhibits, check out my earlier post: “The Best Online & Interactive Museum Exhibits“
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About Jennifer Lockett
I'm a student of the human condition: history, philosophy, art, and culture. I am a passionate educator. I am a lover of new technologies and its abilities to share knowledge
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Posted by Jennifer Lockett on July 29, 2011 in Archaeology, Biblical Archaeology, Classical Archaeology, History, Museums
Tags: Ancient Rome, Aya Sophia, Byzantine, Byzantium, Christianity, Early Church, Hagia Sophia, History, Rome, http:/
Just because you're online doesn't mean that you can't experience the world first-hand - or as close to first-hand as possible. Here are websites that feature virtual learning experiences, exposing online visitors to everything from history to geography, astronomy to anatomy, literature to government.