Timeline Saturday 27 December 532

Events on Saturday 27 December 532 1

• 532 – 537 Hagia Sophia -- built in five years Justinian commissions a completely new Hagia Sophia immediately after the Nika Riots destroy the previous church. The architects Anthemius of Tralles (a mathematician) and Isidore of Miletus (a physicist and engineer) design a building of unprecedented ambition: a central dome 31.24 metres in diameter, raised 55.6 metres above the floor, floating on four pendentives that transfer its weight to four massive piers. 10,000 workers build it in five years. On its dedication (27 December 537), Justinian reportedly exclaims: 'Glory to God who has thought me worthy to finish this work. Solomon, I have surpassed you.' It remains the world's largest cathedral for nearly 1,000 years.