One of the world’s most famous religious buildings, Istanbul’s Hagia Sophia was extraordinary when it was built in the sixth ...

MOSCOW, July 15. /TASS/. Icons and frescos of Hagia Sophia will be preserved as they are despite the change in status, Turkish Ambassador to Russia Mehmet Samsar said in an interview with TASS.

Turkey's Hagia Sophia will open to visitors outside prayer times and its Christian icons will remain, religious officials said on Tuesday, after a court ruling paved the way for it to become a mosque.

Although “Hagia Sophia” sounds as if it was named for a Christian saint, it actually means “Holy Wisdom” in Greek. After conquering Constantinople, the young sultan — he was only 21 ...