The Hagia Sophia, in Istanbul, has been under renovation for the last 17 years, since being named a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1993. The main bulk of the renovations, both structural and artistic are now complete, and the newly cleaned interior is once again open to the public.
One interesting discovery during the renovations is that the large calligraphic roundels, added when the church was converted into a mosque after the Ottoman conquest, were too large to fit through the door assembled. They, therefore, must have been brought in apart, assembled and painted in the church proper.
(source)
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One interesting discovery during the renovations is that the large calligraphic roundels, added when the church was converted into a mosque after the Ottoman conquest, were too large to fit through the door assembled. They, therefore, must have been brought in apart, assembled and painted in the church proper.
(source)
A
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