Istanbul
Topkapi Palace
The oldest and the largest of the remaining palaces in the world
is the Topkapi Place, a museum since 1924. The palace is located where the
acropolis of Byzantium once stood on the peninsula overlooking the Golden
Horn, the Bosphorus and the Sea of Marmara. The palace complex covers an area of 700,000 sq meters and is
surrounded by five km of walls.
The Topkapi Palace is the second palace built by Turks in Istanbul.
After young Sultan Mehmet II conquered the city in 1453 he had his
first palace built at the site where the Istanbul University stands
today. Soon afterward he ordered a new palace and in 1479, after 14 years, the Topkapi
Palace(initially called the New Palace) was ready for occupancy as the
Sultan's residence and center of government.
The Topkapi Dagger
The dagger that has become the symbol of the palace and the treasury is
an invaluable product of 18th century Turkish craftmanship. There are
four large emeralds on the hilt, the one on the top concealing a watch.
The Kasikei Diamond
The pear-shaped 86-caret Kasikei Diamond is among the largest in the
world. It origin is not known. Legend attributes it name (the Spoonmaker's or Spoonseller's Diamond)
to it sale by a pauper, who was unaware of its value, to the merchant in return
for a few wooden spoons. However, the consensus of the experts is that the Kasikei
Diamond is in fact the "Pigot" Diamond named after an officer in the French army
who is known to have bought a diamond of similar dimensions and shape in India in 1774.
The Pigot Diamond could be traced, after numerous owners, to Napolean Bonaparte's mother and
then to the Ottoman governor. Since the Kasikei Diamond was transferred to the Ottoman
treasury among the treasure of governor Tepedelenli Ali Pasa, who was executed in the 1840's after conviction
for rebellion against the state, it is highly probable that the Kasikei and Pigot diamonds are the same.
The beautiful, specially cut Kasikei Diamond is surround by 49 smaller diamonds embedded in gold in two rows.
The Sultan Ahmet Mosque
(The Blue Mosque)
The Sultan Ahment Mosque, one of the most revered masterpices not on of Turkey but
of the Islamic World as well, inspires deep admiration in all those who visit it. It
is by many monuments dating back to the earlier phases of the history of Istanbul, and its fine
silhouette is prominent part of the beautiful skyline of Istanbul as seen from the sea.
Although built between 1609 and 1616 by Sultan Ahmet I(and named after him) the mosque is known
through out the world as "the Blue Mosque" owing to the dominant color of the paint and the
ceramic tiles used generously to decorate its interior. The architect designed and built the
mosque as the core of the complex consisting of such functional buildings as a covered bazaar,
a Turkish bath, a public kitchen for the poor, a hospital, schools, a caravanserai, the later
the tomb of Sultan Ahmet I. Unfortunately, some of these structures have not survived to this day.
More Information and links on Istanbul
Sights and Sounds of Istanbul
Images of Istanbul
Palaces
Istanbul and the Marmara Area
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