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Why Did the First Dome of Hagia Sophia Collapse? - The Imperial Wager Behind Hagia Sophia | Sleepy Facts About History
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In January of 532, the center of Constantinople burned during the Nika riots, leaving the old church of Hagia Sophia in ruins. The emperor Justinian responded by ordering an unprecedented reconstruction project, tasking two theorists of geometry and mechanics, Anthemius of Tralles and Isidore of Miletus, to span a vast interior with a dome larger than any ever built. The new church had to be completed with extraordinary speed to demonstrate that the empire had survived the uprising…
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