Hagia Sophia in Context: An Archaeological Re-examination of the Cathedral of Byzantine Constantinople

The Byzantine cathedral of Hagia Sophia has been a source of wonder and fascination since its sixth-century construction. It was the premier monument of the Byzantine capital, Constantinople, and remains one of the most recognizable symbols of modern Istanbul. Often seen as encapsulating Byzantine history and culture, the building has been the subject of much scholarly interest since the Renaissance. However, while almost all previous archaeological work has focussed on the church itself, the surrounding complex of ecclesiastical buildings has been largely neglected. The research project presented here (co-directed by the authors) is the first to focus on the archaeology of the immediate environs of the church in order to understand the complex as a whole. Previously unrecorded material includes parts of the Patriarchal complex, from which the Orthodox Church was governed for almost a millennium, what may be the ‘Great Baptistery’ north of the church, and what are perhaps the first fragments of the fourth-century phase of the cathedral yet identified. The discovery of an unrecognized porch, surviving to its full height within the standing building, changes the known plan of the famous sixth-century church. This new information provides fresh evidence about the appearance and function of the complex, illustrating its similarities to, and dissimilarities from, Episcopal centers elsewhere in the Byzantine world. Combined with other archaeological sources, these discoveries enable us to place the sixth-century cathedral in its urban context and to reconsider what Hagia Sophia can tell us about the wider Byzantine world.Table of ContentsPrefaceTerminology and conventionsAcknowledgmentsChapter 1: IntroductionThe Patriarchal complexThe Hagia Sophia Project 2004–2018Methods and practical constraintsChapter 2: The undiscovered church: Hagia Sophia before JustinianIntroductionFourth-century structuresFifth-century structuresFeatures below the sixth-century church identified in other recent workConclusionChapter 3: New light on Justinian’s Hagia SophiaIntroductionButtress piers, their external staircase towers and the corner staircases in the base of the domeThe VestibulesThe access rampsNewly recorded sixth-century decorationMarble veneer on the church exteriorStructures southwest of the Justinianic church: the Patriarchal palaceStructures surrounding the Large HallThe southwest vestibule of the churchThe Baptistery south of the churchA large rectilinear structure north of the sixth-century churchMarble paving around the church and evidence for surrounding courtyardsArchaeology and liturgy in Justinian’s churchConclusionChapter 4: Revealing the Byzantine cathedral: Hagia Sophia after JustinianIntroductionThe SkeuophylakionNorth-east and south-east vestibulesThe north-east rampPost-sixth-century modifications to the PatriarchateIdentifying the Large Hall and associated structures with the later textually-attested additions to the Patriarchal palaceThe BaptisteryThe buttressesThe south-west buttressThe south middle buttressThe north middle buttressThe north-east buttressThe west flying buttressesThe remaining buttressesArchaeology and liturgy after the sixth centuryConclusionChapter 5: Sixth-century Hagia Sophia in its wider contextIntroductionHagia Sophia in the context of surrounding structures and landscape featuresBuilding Orthodoxy in sixth-century ConstantinopleBibliography Read more