Changes After Construction
Sultan Mahmud I wished to transform Hagia Sophia into a complex; together with the library, şadırvan, soup kitchen, and imaret, he commissioned the sıbyan mektebi (primary school) in 1740.
As seen in Turgut Kut’s 1928 study on waqf (foundation) schools, the building was assigned for the use of the imam of Hagia Sophia Mosque.
After Hagia Sophia was converted into a museum in 1934, it was used as the residence of the museum director.
After Hagia Sophia regained mosque status in 2020, the sıbyan mektebi also began to be used together with the Hagia Sophia complex.
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The building is situated as a freestanding structure within the southwestern courtyard of Hagia Sophia.
The building is two storeys high; it is built with regular courses of stone and brick.
The upper floor has a square plan; it receives abundant light through three windows on each of its three façades.
The classroom is covered with a dome; the transition to the dome is provided through an octagonal drum formed by corner triangles.
There are examples of birdhouses on its façades.
Sıbyan mektebs were institutions that functioned as primary schools in the Ottoman period and were mostly built together with mosques and masjids.
