Aya Sofya

Western Anatolia

LoginSave

Originally a great Justinian church, Aya Sofya (Church of the Divine Wisdom) is now a mosque surrounded by a rose garden. The building encompasses ruins of three different structures. A mosaic floor and a mural of Jesus, Mary and John the Baptist survive from the original church.

Destroyed by an earthquake in 1065, it was later rebuilt with the mosaics set into the walls. The Ottomans converted it to a mosque, but a 16th-century fire again destroyed it. Reconstruction supervised by the great Ottoman architect Mimar Sinan (1489–1588) added İznik tiles to the decoration.

Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

  • City Walls & Gates

    City Walls & Gates

    0.47 MILES

    İznik's once-imposing Roman walls, renovated by the Byzantines, no longer dominate but parts of their 5km circumference remain impressive. Four main gates…

  • İznik Museum

    İznik Museum

    0.35 MILES

    İznik's museum is housed in a soup kitchen that Sultan Murat I built for his mother, Nilüfer Hatun, in 1388. Born a Byzantine princess, Nilüfer was given…

  • Church of the Koimesis

    Church of the Koimesis

    0.31 MILES

    Scant foundations remain of the church that was once famous as the burial place of the Byzantine emperor Theodore I (Lascaris). Built around 800 and…

  • İznik Viewpoint

    İznik Viewpoint

    1 MILES

    Marked by a towering Turkish flag, İznik's hilltop viewpoint makes a good sunset walk (2km). From here you'll have views of the lake stretching away…

  • Lefke Gate

    Lefke Gate

    0.49 MILES

    Part of İznik's Roman-Byzantine fortifications, the eastern Lefke Gate comprises three gateways dating from Byzantine times. The middle of these bears a…

  • Yeşil Cami

    Yeşil Cami

    0.38 MILES

    Built between 1378 and 1387 under Sultan Murat I, Yeşil Cami has Seljuk Turkish proportions, influenced by the Seljuk homeland of Iran. The minaret's…

  • Saray Gate

    Saray Gate

    0.39 MILES

    The remains of the minor Saray Gate, part of the fortified city walls, are reached down a winding country lane between the town and the olive groves…

  • Yenişehir Gate

    Yenişehir Gate

    0.4 MILES

    İznik's most impressive stretch of historic city walls, reaching 10m to 13m in height, stand between this southern gate and the eastern Lefke Gate.

View more attractions

Nearby Western Anatolia attractions

2. Hacı Özbek Cami

0.17 MILES

Dating from 1332, the centrally located Hacı Özbek Cami is one of İznik's oldest mosques.

3. Roman Theatre

0.25 MILES

The toppled ruins of a 15,000-seat Roman theatre are concealed down Tiyatro Sokak. From here you can continue walking to the southwestern Saray Gate and…

4. Church of the Koimesis

0.31 MILES

Scant foundations remain of the church that was once famous as the burial place of the Byzantine emperor Theodore I (Lascaris). Built around 800 and…

5. Göl Gate

0.32 MILES

Only slight remnants remain of this gate that leads to the lake in İznik's Roman-Byzantine fortifications.

6. Şeyh Kutbettin Cami

0.33 MILES

The restored Şeyh Kutbettin Cami (1492) lies across the road to the south of the İznik Museum.

7. İznik Museum

0.35 MILES

İznik's museum is housed in a soup kitchen that Sultan Murat I built for his mother, Nilüfer Hatun, in 1388. Born a Byzantine princess, Nilüfer was given…

8. Yeşil Cami

0.38 MILES

Built between 1378 and 1387 under Sultan Murat I, Yeşil Cami has Seljuk Turkish proportions, influenced by the Seljuk homeland of Iran. The minaret's…

  • placement: superzone
  • path: Destinations/POIs/superzone
  • possible size: [970, 250], [970, 90], [728, 90], [1, 1],
  • targeting: 
    {
  "url": "turkey/iznik/attractions/aya-sofya/a/poi-sig/1029956/360888",
  "destination": "Western-Anatolia",
  "continent": "Europe",
  "country": "Türkiye",
  "region": "Western-Anatolia",
  "position": "superzone"
}