2015-06-26

【Aiden in English】

        Churches are a legitimate way to showcase art. Some architectures are matched by those of the Roman, Byzantine, and Ottoman Empires. Arriving in Europe, we could not escape the lush history of religion. Religion, to some extent, is the history of an exotic area. 

        Among all the religions in the world, one emerges from the rest, and this one is Islam. With them came a type of church that defined every Christian, Catholic, or Orthodox architectural law. It became a mosque. We have arrived in Istanbul, the largest city in Turkey and the only city in the world on two continents. Here, each civilization from all three significant empires has left behind fascinating aspects of its diverse cultures and traditions. And well, let's say Istanbul incarnates highly religious beliefs. When I mention it, I mean going to extremes. 

        Today's highlight was the famous Hagia Sophia, also known as the Church of Holy Wisdom. This wondrous model of Byzantine architecture was built by Constantine the Great in 325 and converted into a mosque by Sultan Mehmet in 1453. The Islamic faith doesn't permit religious iconic imagery in a place of worship. Still, the Byzantine mosaics were so exceptional that they weren't destroyed; instead, they were plastered over and incorporated additional Muslim elements. They were only dramatically revealed in 1936 when the building became a museum.

        The minarets rose high up into the sky, spiraling up and up as if they were reaching for the clouds. The shining gold dome, sparkling with reflected lights, made the air around it seem to shimmer. Unlike in Europe, the unique mosaic marble and pillars held up a massive dome decorated with mosaics. However, a few changes have been made to the building over the years. It had collapsed twice previously due to the miscalculations of the dome's weight and pressure. The knowledge of that piece of information didn't exactly calm my nerves. So, throughout the tour, instead of saying and repeating, "Don't look down," I whispered: "Don't look up!" I took special notice of the floor and the lower walls. The color varied, but as far as I could tell, the material appeared to be the same as that of all the Greek churches I visited. You guessed it (hopefully)! It was marble! Yet, why were there green and red variations of colors? The answer was that the white marble on the floor was local from Ephesus, while the ones in different colors were imported from Egypt and other Mediterranean countries. That led to the question of why the mosque absolutely had no paintings. Every picture, pattern, or decoration was a mosaic of elements. The work was nice, but not outstanding. What astonished me was how they placed the piece of art on the dome roof. They had to work with the dome on the ground and then carefully lift it onto the walls. Or people had to get a considerable boost from a platform to reach the roof, not to mention putting tiny pebbles into place. The building mainly resembled the Byzantine style. The mosques also developed various styles. They had the other styles of the world as ingredients, and the architect of Hagia Sophia tossed them in the oven, and out came … whatever masterpiece you call this.

        The Islamic culture gained much fame through mosques because nothing resembles these structures of glory. The Christian churches are significant, but sometimes, something different turns into what we need for a masterpiece.

【紅霞譯】

        教堂可謂藝術再現形式，某些出自古羅馬“力量”、拜占庭“東羅馬”及奧斯曼“強大”帝國的宗教建築風格迥異，彼此之間形成了鮮明對比。一旦走進歐洲，我們根本無法迴避早已根深蒂固的宗教歷史，宗教儼然與異國風情密不可分。

        縱觀天下所有宗教，伊斯蘭教徹底打破基督教、天主教、東正教的清規戒律，全新創出與眾不同的清真寺。眼下我們置身土耳其規模最大、世界上唯一地跨歐亞兩大陸的城市，這個曾為三大帝國首都的君士坦丁堡(現為伊斯坦布爾“進城”)承襲了多元性文化以及本民族傳統之精髓，將神聖的宗教信仰推向極致，甚至可以說達到了非常極端的境地。

        今天我們出遊焦點集中在著名的清真寺——聖索非亞大教堂，也叫上帝聖智教堂。公元325年間，由君士坦丁大帝始建這座美輪美奐的拜占庭式建築；1453年，蘇丹王穆罕默德“先知”着手改造成清真寺。伊斯蘭教規通常不允許在敬拜真主的地方出現聖像，但因欣賞拜占庭馬賽克“鑲嵌工藝”才沒有完全銷毀基督殿堂，只不過塗上石灰將原有象徵基督教的部分掩蓋起來，重新加固裝修並增設了具有穆斯林特色的建築結構，直到1936年聖索非亞大教堂作為博物館進入公眾視線，歷史真相才昭然若揭。

        聖索非亞大教堂的尖塔直衝雲霄，而且一個賽過一個，大有欲與天公試比高之勢；穹窿頂尖金光閃耀，反射的餘輝令周圍一切黯然失色。與歐洲其它教堂不同，獨樹一幟的馬賽克大理石柱支撐對角線為直徑的圓頂，上面全部裝飾着鑲嵌圖案，多年來該清真寺不斷維修加建，之前曾因穹頂重量和壓力計算失誤而出現過兩次倒塌事故，聽來不免令人心驚肉跳，所以在參觀期間，我不是反覆告誡自己莫往下看，而是喃喃地提醒自己：“千萬別抬頭朝上張望！”我有意盯着地面幾乎接近牆角，眼前五顏六色，所用材料倒與我去過的希臘所有東正教堂沒啥兩樣，你猜得出（希望如此）！沒錯，正是大理石！但為什麼有綠色和紅色不同顏色變化呢？原來白色大理石來自本國以弗所“理想城”，而其它帶色的則全部從埃及和地中海其它國家進口，由此引申出清真寺為何要塗顏料問題。實際上，這裡每一幅畫、每一個圖案、每一幀裝飾全靠馬賽克，做工精緻講究，但材料本身非常普通。我十分好奇它們是怎樣被貼到穹頂上的，想不到要先把穹頂拿下來放在地面，然後再小心翼翼地舉上去恢復回位，換句話說，人們必須藉助擎天梯子方能夠到頂部，且不提同時還要捎帶上用來裝飾的鵝卵碎石。聖索非亞大教堂主要沿襲了拜占庭建築風格，隱含不少獨到之處，建築師們在借鑑國際先進設計的同時勇於革新，歷經千辛萬苦…終於打造出來震撼天下的不朽傑作。

        清真寺極大地弘揚了伊斯蘭教文化，世上沒有什麼比如此形象的建築更能體現穆斯林精神。儘管基督教教堂在所有宗教建築中獨領風騷，但有時大千世界需要新生事物來完善自身。

Today in History(歷史上的今天):

2015: Istanbul, the Gate of Felicity TRU(土耳其伊斯坦布爾·東西合璧)

2015: Istanbul, Grand Bazaar of Turkey(土耳其伊斯坦布爾·大集市)

2014: Chili's(紅辣椒燒烤酒吧)

Panorama of Hagia Sophia Grand Mosque

(聖索非亞大教堂清真寺·全景 06-26-2015)

Minarets (宣禮塔 06-26-2015)

One of the 2 Biggest Minarets Added Later by Selim II

(塞利姆二世後來增建的兩座最大尖塔之一)

Old Minaret (老宣禮塔)

Sadırvan for Ritual Ablutions (供受洗儀式使用的水池)

Remains of the Older Church (老教堂遺物)

5^th-Century Remnants of Theodosian (五世紀天賜大教堂遺物)

Church of Saint Sava (啟蒙者教堂 06-26-2015)

Apse of the Virgin and Child (後殿《聖母子》 06-27-2015)

Apse of the Virgin and Child (後殿《聖母子》馬賽克)

Loge of the Empress (皇后包廂 06-26-2015)

Empress Loge God's Wonder Marble as Medium and the Natural Image in Mosques & Modernism

(堪稱上帝奇蹟的皇后包廂·以大理石作為媒介，展示清真寺與現代主義中的自然圖像)

Empress Loge (皇后包廂)

Polychrome Marble Revetment (彩色大理石護牆)

Medallions and Chandeliers (項鍊垂飾與枝形吊燈)

The Face of the Hexapterygon (六翼天使臉)

6-Winged Angel (六翼天使)

Christian & Islamic Elements (基督教和伊斯蘭元素)

Mihrab, Located in the Apse, Pointing toward Mecca

(位於後殿面朝麥加的壁龕)

Mihrab in the Apse w/ the Altar, Pointing towards Mecca

(位於後殿的壁龕·矗立着指向麥加的祭壇)

Vaulting Nave (拱形中殿 06-26-2015)

Pulpit (講壇)

Ceiling Decoration Showing Original Christian Cross Still Visible through the Later Aniconic Decoration

(天花板裝飾顯示出原始的基督教十字架，在後來非標誌性裝飾中依然可見)

Marble Floor of the Omphalion (臍點大理石地面)

Lustration Urn Brought from Pergamon by Murad III & Carved from A Single Block of Marble in the 2^nd Century BC

(由穆拉德三世從帕加馬古城帶來的由一塊公元前二世紀完整大理石做成的潔淨骨灰缸)

Wishing Column (許願柱)

Sultan Mahmud I's Library in 1739 & Decorated w/ the 16^th-18^th Century Iznik, Kutahya, & Tekfur Palace Tiles

(1739年用16—18世紀伊茲尼克、屈塔希和泰富爾瓷磚建成的蘇丹·馬哈茂德一世圖書館)

The Loggia of the Empress with/ the Columns Made of Green Thessalian Stone 

(柱子由綠色塞薩爾石製成的女皇涼廊)

Revetment over Imperial Gate (皇門護岸)

Polychrome Marble Revetment on the Wall of the Gallery

(畫廊牆壁上的彩色大理石護牆)

Imperial Gate Mosaic (帝王門馬賽克)

Details of Imperial Gate Mosaic (帝王門馬賽克細節)

Imperial Gate Relief (帝王門浮雕)

10^th-Century Southwestern Entrance Mosaic Panel

(西南門·10世紀西南門馬賽克板)

Southwestern Entrance (西南門)

The Deësis Mosaic (迪西斯 "代禱" 馬賽克《三聖像》)

Detail from the Deësis Byzantine Mosaic of Jesus Christ Pantocrator

(迪西斯拜占庭馬賽克的細節·耶穌基督萬能)

Byzantine Mosaic of Jesus Christ Sitting on Throne w/ Empress Zoe & Emperor Constantine IX Monomachus

(聖母子坐在艾琳·杜卡斯女皇和約翰二世科穆寧皇帝之間)

Byzantine mosaic of Jesus Christ Sitting on Throne w/ Empress Zoe & Emperor Constantine IX Monomachus 

(拜占庭馬賽克·耶穌基督與皇后佐伊“生命”和皇帝君士坦丁九世莫諾馬庫斯一起坐在寶座上)

Crosslinks(相關博文):

Turkey(出遊土耳其)

Europe(歐洲掠影)

6th Grade(初中一年級)