St. Sophia Museum

Located at the heart of Istanbul , the St. Sophia Museum is just next to the Blue Mosque. Between Ataturk Street and Kilicaslan Street , this must be one of the best examples of what Byzantine architecture truly is. Also known as the Church of Hagia Sophia , Ayasofya Mosque and Old Mosque, St. Sophia was ironically once a church and a mosque. Between the period of 532 to 537 AD, Emperor Justinian I built St. Sophia as the largest Constantinian Church in the world. Translated as "Holy Wisdom" in English, Hagia Sophia was converted into a Mosque when Ottomans conquered Constantinople in 1453. Headed by the Ottoman Sultan Mehmet II, they added four minarets, a mausoleum, a fountain, and collections symbolizing Muslim culture such as huge wooden shields with Koran calligraphy.

After almost five centuries later, Hagia Sophia was converted into a national museum by the father of Turkey himself, Mustafa Kemal Ataturk. The museum is open everyday,