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A sweeping restoration effort has begun at Istanbul’s iconic Hagia Sophia Grand Mosque, one of the world’s most celebrated religious and architectural landmarks. The centuries-old structure, now a mosque and a UNESCO-listed heritage site, is undergoing its most extensive preservation works in years to protect it from the growing threat of earthquakes and reveal long-hidden historical details.
Architect Hasan Firat Diker, who is leading the restoration, stressed the global significance of the task. “We are not just responsible for this building but to the entire world public,” he told The Guardian, highlighting the team’s commitment to preserving the cultural legacy of Hagia Sophia for future generations.
First constructed in 537 A.D. under the late Roman, also known as the Byzantine Empire, Hagia Sophia has endured earthquakes, conquests, and reconstructions across 15 centuries. Its famed central dome—originally collapsed in 558 and rebuilt multiple times—now rests unevenly atop four columns of different sizes. Many of the building’s features bear the marks of historical repairs, blending Byzantine grandeur with Ottoman elegance.
The team will strip back centuries of lead and restoration layers from the dome to assess its true structural condition. "We know at the moment it’s not a perfect sphere due to the multiple interventions," said Diker. "The problem is not the dome itself but what is holding it up, for now. But when we uncover it, we will better see the cracks.”
The need for urgent intervention was reinforced by a 6.2-magnitude earthquake last month near Istanbul, which rattled buildings throughout the city. Türkiye lies on two major fault lines and has endured catastrophic quakes in recent years, including one in early 2023 that claimed more than 53,000 lives.
“In the most terrifying scenario, an earthquake will shake the entire structure,” Diker warned. “The main arch connecting the main dome and semi-domes could tremble and there might be cracks that occur.” Such a tremor could even bring the mosque’s towering minarets crashing into the central dome.
In addition to structural reinforcement, the restoration team, comprised of architects, engineers and art historians, hopes to uncover hidden details from Hagia Sophia’s Ottoman past. Beneath the gold and yellow interior surfaces, experts believe lost murals from its mosque era may be concealed.
“These reconstructions over different periods created layers of buildup on the dome’s surface,” Diker noted. “We’ll peel back those layers and may discover artwork not seen for centuries.”
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Despite the scale of the project, the mosque will remain open to the public. Specially designed scaffolding and coverings will allow prayer and visitation to continue while protecting the structure from heat and rain.
“We need to care for the comfort of our visitors,” said Diker. “Those who come here should be able to see as much of the Hagia Sophia as they can despite the restoration.”
Though no fixed timetable has been announced, the scale and ambition of the work have already positioned it as one of Türkiye’s most significant cultural preservation efforts of the 21st century.
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