The construction was entrusted to two architects from Western Anatolia, Anthemios from Tralles (Aydın) and Isidoros from Miletos (Milet-Balat). Justinian ordered materials from all parts of his vast empire, including the processes and materials of older structures. In this way, eight large red porphyry columns were brought from Heliopolis in Egypt, as well as cues from the Temple of Artemis in Ephesus (Ayasuluk-Selçuk) in Western Anatolia, Kyzikos (Kapudag Peninsula), and Baalbek in Syria, and various types and colors of marble were obtained from other places. Justinian oversaw the construction and motivated the workers involved in the project. The building was completed within six years and opened with a grand ceremony on December 27, 537. Procopius, who described Justinian’s facilities, says that on the opening day, Justian said, “I passed you, Suleyman,” meaning he could construct the hugest temple ever in history.
Hagia Sofia opened a new area for Eastern Roman architecture, affecting Western architectural styles. The church’s architecture is based on the basilica plan, which is the dominant plan of Christian religious structures; the two architects opted to cover the central space of the building with a massive, low and hemispherical dome, measuring approximately 31-33 meters in diameter, using pendentives that form a swelling sail as the main shell. Even though in the Roman Pagan temples using the domes was typical such as in Pantheon, Hagia Sofia carried this usage to another stage. Using the heightened domes became dominant in Eastern Roman architecture. It is also vital to notice that domes represent the authority of the dynasties.
Europeans learned the usage of the heightened domes during the IV Crusade when they invaded Constantinople in 1204. It is not surprising to read how they were shocked when they first saw the monumental building from the words of Geoffroi de Villehardoin, the French chronicle writer and knight. Venetians also copied the architectural style of the Aya Apostoloi Church that existed in place of Fatih Mosque during the Crusade while constructing the famous San MarK’s Church in Venice. Benefiting from the architectural style of Constantinople contributed a lot to Western architecture. However, this is not the only thing the invaders did during the invasion. They disturbed Hagia Sofia tragically. Most of the mosaics were stolen, and Ambon and the other essential goods disappeared.
Anyways, Hagia Sofia affected Islamic Architecture during the Ottoman Period. Most of the monumental mosques, such as Süleymaniye and Sultanahmet, were inspired by its design. So. If you want to stroll through the streets of İstanbul, the shadow of Hagia Sofia will always follow you since we owe the horizontal appearance of the city to that great church and its successors.
