Interior of Aagie Sophia

This drawing shows the eastern end of the basilica of Haghia Sophia, (Aya Sofya in modern Turkish) used as a mosque from the conquest in 1453 until 1936. The minber or pulpit can be seen on the right, with the muezzin mahfili or platform for the call to prayer on the left. Two rectangular lehva (painted wooden plaques bearing the Sacred Islamic Names) are seen hanging from the piers. The plaques were replaced by roundels during the restoration of 1847-9. This was ordered by Sultan Abdülmecid and completed under the supervision of the Swiss-Italian architect brothers Gaspare and Giuseppe Fossati. They repaired the dome, vaults and columns, and oversaw the redecoration of the exterior and the interior of the building. Thus the date of this drawing is probably about 1846, before repairs started and the lehva were replaced.