Hagia Sophia: Perspectives from Cultural Heritage, Zoom, September 19, 2020, 12:00–2:30 pm
This panel brings together scholars and analysts to comment on the recent conversion of the Hagia Sophia from a museum into a mosque from the perspective of architectural history in geopolitical context. What is the building’s significance for Byzantine, early and late Ottoman, Republican and contemporary Turkish architecture? How will the Hagia Sophia’s conversion into a mosque in 2020 impact its use, global and local public meaning, place in the city and nearby monuments, physical attributes, Byzantine mosaics, Christian and Muslim symbols, marble floor, and acoustics, among other things? What effects did the building’s recent conversion make in different areas of historical studies? Are there comparable examples elsewhere in the world?
The panel is organized by the Institute for European Studies of Einaudi Center for International Studies at Cornell University.
Advance registration required.