Fifteen centuries of history, an active mosque, and a visit that takes an hour if you time it right.
Completed in 537 under Justinian as the largest cathedral in the world, converted to a mosque in 1453, made a museum in 1935 and returned to worship in 2020. The dome, 31 metres across and seemingly unsupported, rewrote what architecture was thought capable of.
It functions as a mosque, so visiting pauses during the five daily prayers, shoulders and knees must be covered, and women cover their hair — scarves are available at the entrance. Shoes come off at the carpeted area.
First thing in the morning or late afternoon. Midday between 11:00 and 15:00 brings tour groups and long queues, particularly from May to September.
The Deesis mosaic in the upper gallery, the Viking runes carved into a marble parapet, the weeping column, and the calligraphic roundels — the layers of two religions and three empires sitting on top of each other.
Around 20–30 minutes by taxi from Şişli, depending on traffic.