Wonders of the World Nominee: Hagia Sophia

Hagia Sophia is a former basilica and then mosque in Istanbul, Turkey. The building was constructed as a Byzantine cathedral around 535 AD. It remained as the largest cathedral in the world for the next 1000 years. Hagia Sophia has a large prominant dome which used a new construction technique that allowed windows to be placed in it and for light to enter more easily into the chuch. Hagia Sophia was converted to a museum in the 20th century and remains one to this day.