Kept Light » Ayasofya

Hagia Sophia, a new mosaic unveiled

A. Cemal Ekin — Sun, 26 Jul 2009 15:01:16 +0000

I read in a Turkish newspaper, Aksam, that one of the mosaics in Hagia Sophia was cleaned to reveal the face of the angel Seraphim. According to the news article, the mosaic has been covered for about 160 years. Possibly because of this, the pieces of the mosaic are preserved exceptionally well. This is exciting news for art historians and art lovers around the world. It is particularly exciting for me as I was probably within touching distance from the beautiful face when I was up on the scaffolding a month ago.

As soon as I saw the photograph of the mosaic I thought of photographic techniques that allow to photograph a 360-degree picture of a human head spread on two dimensional surface. In time, perhaps I will try to wrap this mosaic photograph on a 3-D head to see how well it will map. The following is an example of such a photograph. (Original is at Panocamera.com)

From the roof of Hagia Sophia

A. Cemal Ekin — Fri, 24 Jul 2009 19:04:13 +0000

Earlier, I posted a slide show consisting of the photographs I took inside Hagia Sophia. Since then, I have created a second slide show, this time featuring the photographs taken from the roof of Hagia Sophia. You will see the Blue Mosque, the old hippodrome, the obelisks on one side; and Hagia Eirene and the Topkapi Palace on the other. In between, you will see the Marmara Sea and a view of Istanbul not many has seen before.

I walked a narrow ledge on the roof, probably not wider than 4 feet, to go from the front side to the back side so that I could see Hagia Eirene and Topkapi Palace. Making that walk with no protection was not the smartest thing I have ever done! But, the view on the other side was worth it (now that I made it back in one piece!)

In this post, as well as the earlier one you will see both slide shows. I hope you enjoy the show.

Hagia Sophia: A Short Video

A. Cemal Ekin — Tue, 14 Jul 2009 03:03:56 +0000

I posted some of the photographs I took in, around, and from the dome of Hagia Sophia earlier. I wanted to provide an interpretation that evoked The Great Church in use; so I created a short video that is set to Byzantine Chant. I watched it a few times with great awe of the structure that remained the largest church in the world for over a millennium.

Here is the video, move your mouse over it, click on the start at the center of the image, and enjoy the music and one of the monuments of humanity.

Hagia Sophia, III: View from the roof

A. Cemal Ekin — Sun, 05 Jul 2009 15:59:13 +0000

From a small trap door they made under one of the large windows between the ribs of the great dome of Hagia Sophia we stepped out to face a magnificent view of the area. As I stepped out, I was looking at the Blue Mosque at the level of its minarets and I could see the Sultanahmet district, the hippodrome, the Marmara Sea, and beyond. The view was breathtaking. You will see a panoramic view that will give you an idea of what hit me. I felt like creating a section of it in the style of gravure printing and hand coloring as a a tribute to the artists who might have painted from this angle centuries ago.

Looking around, you will see many domes extending from Hagia Sophia, its minarets, ornaments that adorn the tops of domes and minarets glittering in the sun. The weather was great, sunny but with a decent cloud cover so soften the light. Without the clouds, most of the photographs would have been far too contrasty as we stepped outside probably around 1:30-2:00 pm in June. Now, that’s strong sun.

There were crows flying all around, some perched on the edges of the buttresses of the church as if to pose for me. They also flew in great number around one of the minarets. Their numbers would increase or decrease as if controlled by some trigger event. When I saw them flying all around, the feeling of the size of the flock is much greater than what a single photograph may record at high speed. The two photographs of the crows flying around the minaret is the result of combining several photographs taken in succession. But the feeling of a large number of crows is very real and true to what I felt at the time.

After I photographed on the side facing the Blue Mosque for about an hour or so, Erdinc asked Reha and I if we would like to walk to the other side. Reha passed the opportunity knowing the passage was a narrow roof-line. I did not want to miss the opportunity to see what the other side offered and accepted the challenge. You will see the roof section I walked to get to the other side. Two people like me would find it difficult to walk side-by-side there. The view from there overlooked the fountain outside the great entrance of the Topkapi Palace.

The view was equally breathtaking from that side, seeing Hagia Irene and Topkapi Palace behind extending to the sea. I photographed there for a while and then Erdinc walking in front and me looking straight at him, I walked back to where we started. All good things must come to an end, so several hours after we entered the church, we stepped inside and took the elevator down. Now, take a look at what I experienced from the roof of Hagia Sophia. What a thrilling experience!

[Show as slideshow]

Hagia Sophia, II: Inside

A. Cemal Ekin — Sun, 05 Jul 2009 15:25:53 +0000

In the previous post you saw photographs of me and Reha in and around Hagia Sophia. In this, and the next post, I will share with you some photographs that I took from the remarkable vantage point I enjoyed of this magnificent structure.

The restoration scaffolding is immense as you can see. It stands 55 meters, over 180-feet, tall. Our host, Erdinc told us that a crew who knows how to assemble it can move it to the next quadrant in 45 days. Once, it took an inexperienced crew over 3 months. The elevator took us to the 55 meter platform where I was able to touch the very center of the dome. The gold foiled medallion that hides the hanging gear of the immense center chandelier is made of wood and nailed to the ceiling. The calligraphy on the ceiling covers the original mosaic art.

Looking down and around makes it very clear that this is an immense structure built more than 1500 years ago. The ribs of the dome show signs of the numerous repairs it has seen, they do not follow a smooth curve. As you will clearly see in some of the photographs, the curvature has kinks in it. The warm color you see is partly due to the gold mosaics and paint reflecting light, and partly to the warm light they use to illuminate the interior. I liked the feeling and did not attempt to correct the color, these photographs reflect what I saw and felt at that time. The scaffolding is shrouded in black netting to prevent items falling down on the visitors. This makes photographing a bit difficult. However, Erdinc would cut a section of the netting for us to use as view ports. The netting does not run and it has a special needle and string that is used to mend the cut parts, much like the fishing nets.

I went down one platform using the stairs to get a better view of some of the lower parts of the building and to have a direct view of the huge abstract angels on either side. The frescos are done in a highly stylized, abstract manner, which I was told was remarakeble for its time. The angel on the left has been repainted by the restoration crew last year and the one on the right awaits its turn.

After both Reha and I took enough photographs from these angles, we climbed to the top platform and proceeded to go outside. This took us down a small hatch through four steps to the circular balcony around the main dome. There I was able to see closely, and touch the original Byzantine gold and silver mosaics. They shimmer in the light with a beautiful glow. Some parts have been restored using crude mosaics and paint, and special painting technique used by Fossati brothers, Gaspare and Giuseppe, in the nineteenth century; and later by the Byzantine Institute. (For more on this restoration see the detailed paper by Natalia B. Teteriatnikov.) You can see a small section of Fossati restoration on my previous post.

While at the new vantage point, I also took a couple of photographs of the altar, which was not visible from the scaffolding or its various platforms. It too was awash in warm light. The large medallions with Ottoman calligraphy on them, which are also visible on a few other photographs here, are L-A-R-G-E! Each is over 24 feet in diameter. In the scale of this immense structure one may mistake them for “wall hangings” which are taller than a two-story house.

Now, enjoy the close viewing of the Great Church.

[Show as slideshow]