Minister Ersoy’s Statement on Hagia Sophia: “When will the original door be used?”

Minister of Culture and Tourism Mehmet Nuri Ersoy stated that the controversial industrial shuttered separate entrance at Hagia Sophia Mosque was a portable mobile protection tunnel.

Minister of Culture and Tourism Mehmet Nuri Ersoy made statements about Hagia Sophia Mosque in a television program he attended. He said, “Once the minaret’s work is completed, this scaffold will be dismantled, and the entrance will be from there. Entries will continue through the original door.”

Ersoy, who expressed that they had initiated a comprehensive restoration throughout Hagia Sophia since last year, stated in the news on NTV, “For the first time, we have a three-dimensional map of a cultural asset like Hagia Sophia. Projects have been prepared. We have two main topics; Restoration and preparing Hagia Sophia for the Istanbul earthquake.”

THE CONTROVERSIAL DOOR

Ersoy, who also mentioned their plans to complete the restoration works by the end of the year, also commented on the much-debated industrial shuttered separate entrance, which sparked discussions on social media.

Speaking about it not as a door, Ersoy emphasized that it was a portable mobile protection tunnel. Ersoy said, “It’s not a door, think of it like a container, you can take it in 2 minutes. These are mobile structures. Once the minaret’s work is completed, this scaffold will be dismantled, and the entrance will be from there. Entries will continue through the original door.”