Hagia Sophia restoration to protect 1,500-year-old Unesco ‘masterpiece’

Standing beneath the chromatic archways, expansive murals and filagree lamps of the Hagia Sophia, the designer Hasan Fırat Diker reflects connected his vocation: the extortion of a fragile operation that is some Turkey’s grandest mosque and possibly its astir contentious building. He is overseeing immoderate of the astir aggravated restoration and preservation works successful the Hagia Sophia’s astir 1,500-year history, including efforts to fortify its expansive cardinal dome and support it from earthquakes.

“We are not conscionable liable for this gathering but to the full satellite public,” Diker said, gesturing astatine the crowds of visitors kneeled connected the plush turquoise carpets oregon gazing astatine the murals of feathered seraphim. He pointed up astatine the golden mosaic and bluish mural interior of the main dome, what helium describes arsenic 1 of the galore “unsolved problems” of the Hagia Sophia’s design.

The imposing structure, archetypal built successful AD537 nether the Byzantine (or eastbound Roman) empire, is visibly uneven successful places, successful peculiar the expansive dome, which for hundreds of years has sat perched atop 4 columns of antithetic dimensions. The full gathering is simply a patchwork of repairs aft the illness of the archetypal dome successful an earthquake successful 558 positive respective of the surrounding half-domes successful aboriginal tremors.

The Hagia Sophia inactive bears features from erstwhile it was 1 of the world’s grandest cathedrals earlier its conversion into a mosque aft the Ottoman conquest successful 1453 of what was past Constantinople.

The gathering was archetypal completed successful AD537 nether the Byzantine empire. Photograph: dbimages/Alamy

Transformed into a depository nether the Turkish republic successful 1935, a Turkish tribunal controversially reclassified it arsenic a mosque 5 years ago. The determination sparked fierce criticism, including from Unesco, which called the Hagia Sophia “an architectural masterpiece” and said the determination to reclassify it undermined “the cosmopolitan quality of its heritage”.

Diker’s role, alongside different architects, engineers and creation historians appointed by the Turkish authorities, volition beryllium to behaviour the astir extended restoration works successful years. The squad volition region the pb covering the main dome and look for ways to fortify the fragile joints betwixt the semi-domes and the main cupola successful bid to forestall earthquake damage.

They volition besides analyse the 4 supporting pillars and parts of the operation beneath ground. “This whitethorn beryllium 1 of the top restorations of the existent play successful Turkey,” Diker said.

Their ngo lone proved much pressing erstwhile past period a 6.2-magnitude earthquake struck disconnected the seashore of Istanbul, causing buildings crossed the metropolis to tremble. Diker instantly rushed from his bureau to adjacent astatine the mosque’s interior and inspect for damage.

Scaffolding soon to screen the interior is intended to let for concern to proceed arsenic usual Photograph: Tunahan Turhan/SOPA Images/Rex/Shutterstock

Turkey sits atop 2 responsibility lines, making it highly susceptible to earthquakes, which tin beryllium deadly erstwhile combined with infrastructure issues. Two almighty earthquakes that struck the country’s south-east successful aboriginal 2023 killed much than 53,000 people, and demolition covering the size of Germany was blamed connected wide corruption successful the operation industry.

Istanbul, a metropolis of 16 cardinal people, densely packed older buildings and architectural wonders, reckons regular with fears of the adjacent ample quake. “In the astir terrifying scenario, an earthquake volition shingle the full structure,” Diker said. “The main arch connecting the main dome and semi-domes could tremble and determination mightiness beryllium cracks that occur.” An earthquake could besides jolt the minaret into the domes, oregon origin the arches to illness entirely.

Diker gestured to hint the arc betwixt the 2 squat domes either broadside of the expansive cardinal dome arsenic helium pointed to patchworks of 3 abstracted periods of restoration and repair since the sixth century.

The restoration works person nary acceptable timetable. Photograph: Emrah Gürel/AP

“For the moment, we volition woody with the outer surfaces, the minarets and the main dome. We volition amended recognize aft removing the dome’s pb covering,” helium said.

“These reconstructions implicit antithetic periods created layers of buildup connected the dome’s aboveground … we cognize astatine the infinitesimal it’s not a cleanable sphere owed to the aggregate interventions. The occupation is not the dome itself but what is holding it up – for now. But erstwhile we uncover it we volition amended spot the cracks.”

The squad volition peel backmost hundreds of years of the building’s past to look astatine however to fortify the structure. They are besides hoping to uncover hidden murals from Hagia Sophia’s clip arsenic an Ottoman mosque that whitethorn prevarication beneath immoderate of its golden and yellowish surfaces.

The restoration works person nary acceptable timetable, and the scaffolding soon to screen the interior is intended to let for concern arsenic usual, portion a specially designed screen volition support the fragile exposed aboveground of the dome from rainfall oregon aggravated heat.

“We request to attraction for the comfortableness of our visitors,” Diker said. “Those who travel present should beryllium capable to spot arsenic overmuch of the Hagia Sophia arsenic they tin contempt the restoration.”