Hagia Sophia

A historical meeting bringing together representatives of 300 million Orthodox Christians, which had been due to be held in Istanbul this year after centuries away, has been shifted to the Greek island of Crete. The move came after the RussianOrthodox Church indicated that it did not want to come to Turkey due to the crisis between the two countries over the downing of a Russian jet that violat

The Turkish Culture and Tourism Ministry released data showing that the Hagia Sophia church that operates as a museum was Turkey’s most visited tourist attraction of 2015.

Istanbul's Hagia Sophia Museum remained Turkey's most visited tourist attraction last year, according to data released by the Culture and Tourism Ministry.

Bulgaria has advised its nationals travelling to Turkey to exercise extra caution following Tuesday's terror attack in Istanbul that left at least 10 people dead and 15 injured.

Extra caution should be exercised particularly on visits to big Turkish cities and popular tourist destinations, the Bulgarian Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

The new interactive production of the Hellenic Foundation for Culture, titled “Hagia Sophia: 1,500 Years of History” kicks off on Saturday, December 19. The digital representation of Hagia Sophia in Istanbul was recreated specifically for the Tholos, the foundation’s high tech virtual reality theater.

Sergei Gavrilov, an MP from the Communist Party of the Russian Federation (CPRF) urged Turkey to return the Hagia Sophia Cathedral to the Orthodox Christian Church. He said that in this way Ankara would demonstrate that good will is above politics. “We expect the Turkish side to show a goodwill gesture and return Hagia Sophia Cathedral to the Christian Church,” he said.

Restoration and conservation work will be conducted on mosaics at the Great Palace Mosaics Museum in Istanbul for the first time since the 1980sEastern Roman mosaics dating back a millennium-and-a-half are set to get their first touch-up in almost three decades at the Istanbul Restoration and Conservation Laboratory to give them a more modern look.

Culture Minister Vezhdi Rashidov on Tuesday moved to stop restoration works at the site of Serdica, an ancient city whose remains lie beneath Bulgaria's capital Sofia.

Rashidov took the step after being warned by citizens that the restoration process is detrimental to the archaeological complex's original appearance.

The Hagia Sophia Museum and the Topkap? Palace in Istanbul?s historic peninsula were visited by 3.5 million people each in 2014, according to data released by the Culture and Tourism Ministry. The number of visitors is expected to increase this year. 

At a moment when it appears that …half – or more – of the Muslim world wants to emigrate at all costs and manner to all points west and north, Turkish Culture and Tourism Minister Yalçın Topçu shared his …dream of transforming the Hagia Sophia museum in Istanbul into an occasional mosque for prayers by the faithful.