Turkey's Hagia Sophia will open to visitors outside prayer times and its Christian icons will remain ... into a mosque from a museum, not from a church,” he said ...

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The head of Russia’s Orthodox Church Patriarch Kirill said he was “deeply concerned” by the moves, describing Hagia Sophia as “one of the greatest monuments of Christian culture.” ...

Tourists flock en masse to the Hagia Sophia for its stunning architecture, glorious interior views and historical significance. Built between 532 and 537, the building was a church for nearly a ...

Diker noted that a large part of the underground structures of Hagia Sophia is as old as the church itself, with some sections contemporary to the temple, which was constructed from 532 to 537 ...

Chairman of the Moscow Patriarchate's Department for External Church Relations Metropolitan Hilarion said. Hagia Sophia is the former Greek Orthodox Christian patriarchal cathedral built in AD 532 ...