Turkey - Blue Hour over Hagia Sophia in Istanbul
Hagia Sophia or Holy Wisdom is the mother church of all Eastern Christians of the Byzantine liturgical tradition both Orthodox and Greek Catholic. Early accounts suggest that the site of this, the grandest church in Christendom, in the first millennium had been the site of a pagan temple appropriated for the service of the new religion. The first church on the site was built by the Eastern Roman Emperor Constantius, son of Emperor Constantine, who had liberated the Christian faith from centuries of persecution. Constantius' church was consecrated in 360 AD.
Hagia Sophia was first named "Megale Ekklesia" (The Great Church) as it was the largest church in Constantinople (Istanbul today). The historian Socrates indicated that the church was named Sophia during the reign of Emperor Constantius. The name given to the church symbolized the second divine attribute of the Holy Trinity. Originally, Sophia, which means "Holy Wisdom", was a name given to Christ by 4th century theologians. For centuries it stood at the heart of two of the world's great religions: To Christians it was Hagia Sophia, Church of the Holy Wisdom, mother church of the Orthodox faith, and of the thousand year old Byzantine Empire. To Muslims, it became Ayasofya Camii, Mosque of Holy Wisdom and jewel of Istanbul. Today its one of the two most important Museums in Turkey.
PENTAX K20D, f/22, 30 sec (30), ISO 100, 29.4 mm
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Comments and faves
*Mike__D*, Φ-Filippos-Κ, Chiggs., M.alkanderi, and 262 other people added this photo to their favorites.
© Lucie Debelkova / www.luciedebelkova.com (49 months ago | reply)
*ღ* M.Al-Baker *ღ* (49 months ago | reply)
great
hans solcer (49 months ago | reply)
wonderful
chrisbest (49 months ago | reply)
Terrific shot. I stayed at a hotel overlooking this last year. Truly magical.
sonetxca (49 months ago | reply)
Great shot!!
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M.alkanderi (49 months ago | reply)
So beautiful i like it
Chiggs. (49 months ago | reply)
Stunning. Beautifully taken.
Pisces Romance (49 months ago | reply)
This is Perfect!
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Thomas_M. (49 months ago | reply)
Oh, the mixture of orange and blue is stunning! A great view of an important building!
MjM Q8 (49 months ago | reply)
so Beautifully :)
nice shot
Brett Cohen (49 months ago | reply)
nice shot ...
:: EdUaRdO65 :: (49 months ago | reply)
Great image and colors!
gigimorara (49 months ago | reply)
veramente imponente e suggestivo!
` ®© ROBERTO CARBONI (49 months ago | reply)
De verdad muy buena te felicito.
Azani_Manaf (49 months ago | reply)
superb shot ..but I'm a bit puzzled about that Socrates part
cnuño [deleted] (49 months ago | reply)
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Gabrios_LBF (49 months ago | reply)
a spectacular place!great lighting
Hervé KERNEIS (49 months ago | reply)
Très belle image. Bravo !
Ventura Carmona (49 months ago | reply)
Maravillosa imagen!!!
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Luĭs Eduardo (49 months ago | reply)
Wonderful
pakitt (49 months ago | reply)
Excellent shot.
I only find the light post on the bottom right a bit distracting, but there was probably nothing it could be done to avoid it in the framing.
Patrick Mayon (49 months ago | reply)
Wow it looks like this photo has not only reached the Explore but is standing on the top of it ! Having said that, it's a fantastic photo of this famous landmark in Istanbul. You take it when the light is the most interesting ! Well done.
©haddock (away) (49 months ago | reply)
Awesome, I'm thinking about moving back there. Yeah the streetlight at the botom right is a nuisance, otherwise wonderful.
lydia63 (49 months ago | reply)
Très joli bravo
Atalay KARACAÖRENLİ (49 months ago | reply)
Bellisima !!!
Martyn Starkey (49 months ago | reply)
Hi, I'm an admin for a group called The Moulin Rouge - Invite Only (+15 FAVES), and we'd love to have this added to the group!
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leyla gundogan (49 months ago | reply)
excellent..
abhishakey (49 months ago | reply)
wow. i've been there, but thislooks quite unreal, magical.
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baris yonter (49 months ago | reply)
superb!
congratulations,explore!
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© Ali Shokri / www.alishokri.com (49 months ago | reply)
excellent night light ,
tones and composition is excellent ,
this colors are really
Mathieu GUY (49 months ago | reply)
great night shot !
singosan777 [deleted] (49 months ago | reply)
nice!
RijkV© (49 months ago | reply)
I love the place.............I love Istanbul....... the place to be.
Very beautiful photo !
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arturpoz (49 months ago | reply)
Beautiful
Jay Bees Pics (49 months ago | reply)
Divine!
larsvandegoor.com (49 months ago | reply)
cograts on such a high spot
merveonur (49 months ago | reply)
it isn't a churc it's a mosque.it was a church.
afc07 (49 months ago | reply)
Excellent!!
'serenity (49 months ago | reply)
"istanbul is not Constantinople" :)
great shot :)
Melinda ^..^ (49 months ago | reply)
beautiful! congrats on explore!
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pat83 - Patrice (49 months ago | reply)
Vraiment magnifique . Bravo !!!!!!!!
eyewitness of moment (49 months ago | reply)
Beautiful capture!
Martyn Starkey (49 months ago | reply)
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Andrea Cucconi (49 months ago | reply)
amazing night shot!
turkishexplorer (49 months ago | reply)
Congragulate you, for presenting my country and city I am living.
Hope I would see more photos from you.
best regards
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