Architecture

Tuesday, 17 February 2026
18 facts about Hagia Sophia
18 facts about Hagia Sophia
The most significant work of Byzantine architecture
The Hagia Sophia's Temple, now an Istanbul mosque, was initially built as the Church of Divine Wisdom. It was the highest-ranking temple in the Byzant ...

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Temple of Artemis
The second temple was built on the order of Croesus of Lydia.
Leading architects of this temple were Chersiphron of Knossos and Metagenes from Knossos. Theodorus of Samos is also believed to participate in the temple's design process.
Mont Saint-Michel
The sanctuary of the Archangel Michael was built on the island. It occupies a small part of the territory of Mont Saint-Michel.
The original name of the sanctuary, used throughout the Middle Ages, was Mons Sancti Michaeli in periculo mari (St. Michael's Mountain in the Perilous Sea).
Göbekli Tepe
The hill, 15 meters (49 feet) high and 300x300 meters (984 x 984 feet) in size, was used for agricultural purposes for many years.
Numerous stones were moved from the site when farmers subdivided the land for cultivation according to their needs. The archeological value of the site has undoubtedly suffered some damage.
Hagia Sophia
When the Ottoman Empire collapsed, Turkey became a secular republic. Its first president Mustafa Kemal Atatürk ordered in 1934 that the temple serving more than 916 years to Christians and 481 years to Muslims, be turned into a museum.
In 2020, an administrative court in Turkey annulled the 1934 decree converting Hagia Sophia into a m ...
Balmoral Castle
Balmoral Castle and the entire Balmoral estate, with an area of 20.000 hectares, is the private property of the British ruling family.
In addition to the royal residences that the monarchs have due to their office, two: Balmoral and Sandringham House, are the private property of the family.
Zwinger
The formal inauguration of the Zwinger took place in 1719.
The pretext was the wedding of Prince Elector Frederick Augustus II (Augustus III of Poland) to the ...
Notre-Dame
The oldest and largest cathedral bell is Emmanuel, cast in 1686.
It has been considered one of Europe's finest church bells and, since 1944, a national historic land ...
Brooklyn Bridge
The bridge changed its name several times.
In 1883 it was called the "New York and Brooklyn Bridge" because Brooklyn was not part of New York until 1898. The name "Brooklyn Bridge" was given in 1915.
Golden Gate Bridge
The construction took only four years to finish.
It was ahead not only of schedule but under the budget as well.
Forbidden City
The Forbidden City is surrounded by imperial gardens on three sides.
To the north is Jingshan Park, also known as Prospect Hill, an artificial hill formed from soil dug ...