Little Hagia Sophia
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Little Hagia Sophia formerly the Church of the Saints Sergius and Bacchus is a former Eastern Orthodox church dedicated to Saints Sergius and Bacchus in Constantinople. The central domed plan building was constructed in 527 and was a model for the Hagia Sophia which was constructed a few years before Hagia Sophia. Because of its external resemblance to the Hagia Sophia it is believed that the building had been designed by the same architects, namely Isidorus of Miletus and Anthemius of Tralles. Shortly after the building of the church a monastery a bearing the same name was built near the edifice. However, in terms of architectural details, the building is quite different in design from the Hagia Sophia.
After the Ottomans conquered Constantinople in 1453, church remained untouched until the reign of Beyazid II. In the years between 1506 and 1513 it was transformed into a mosque by Huseyin Aga. At that time the portico and madrasah were added to the building. The first minaret was built In 1762. That minaret was demolished in 1940 and built again in 1956.
Due to the increasing threats to the building’s static integrity, it was added some years ago to the UNESCO the watchlist of endangered monuments.
Little Hagia Sophia on Google Maps