20 Lira Grand Hagia Sophia Mosque

This piece belongs to a Turkish commemorative series launched as Hagia Sophia's legal status shifted back to an active mosque in July 2020 — the first time it had functioned as one since Atatürk's government converted it to a museum in 1934. The reclassification came by presidential decree following a Turkish Council of State ruling that annulled the 1934 cabinet decision, drawing immediate condemnation from UNESCO and the Greek government.

The mint issued this coin within months of that announcement, making it an unusually direct artifact of a specific, contested political act rather than routine commemorative production.