Istanbul
and Turkey: History and Culture
Istanbul, a World
City
"There
God and human being, nature and art, created
all together such a perfect place on earth,
it is well worth seeing."
This unique city,
at the meeting points of Europe and Asia, located
on both sides of the Bosphorus (Istanbul Straits)
is described as such by the famous French author
Lamartine.
Istanbul embraces
two continents, one arm reaching out to Asia,
the other to Europe. Through the city's heart,
the Bosphorus strait, flows the waters of the
Black Sea, the Sea of Marmara and the Golden
Horn, which is one of the most beautiful natural
harbours in the world. The former capital of
three successive empires - Roman, Byzantine
and Ottoman - today Istanbul honors and preserves
the legacy of its past while looking forward
to its modern future.
The history of
the city, which is known as the "Capital of
the Empires", goes back to ancient times. The
city was founded by the Megaras in A.D. 658
and was named Byzantium after their commander
Byzas. The city, which developed very rapidly
and turned into a large trade center, existed
for hundreds of years as the capital of the
Roman, Byzantine, and Ottoman Empires. Today
it has become Turkey's most important tourism,
trade, and industrial city.
The
most beautiful historical works of Istanbul
are at the historical peninsula inside the city
walls between the Marmara Sea and the Golden
Horn. This historical peninsula is like an open
air museum full of architectural and artistic
works bearing the traces of the Roman, Byzantine,
and Ottoman Empires.
Istanbul's variety
fascinates its visitors. The museums, churches,
palaces, great mosques, bazaars and sights of
natural beauty seem inexhaustible. The hills
of the city are enhanced by the more than 500
mosques. Among these mosques, the Sultanahmet
Mosque with its six minarets, built by Sultan
Ahmet I in the seventeenth century, is the symbol
of Istanbul. It is also called "the Blue Mosque"
because of the blue glazed tiles used in its
interior decoration. The Süleymaniye Mosque,
another mosque of the Ottoman Period, is the
most beautiful and magnificent architectural
work in Istanbul. It was constructed by Turkey's
famous architect Mimar Sinan, upon the order
of Kanuni Sultan Süleyman (Süleyman the Magnificent)
in the sixteenth century, when architectural
beauty reached its peak. It is perched on the
hills of the Golden Horn like a crown. The Rüstem
Pasha Mosque, which reveals the aesthetics of
the Ottoman art of glazed tiles, is a small
but beautiful mosque constructed by Mimar Sinan
in the sixteenth century. The inside of the
mosque is covered with the most beautiful examples
of the famous Iznik glazed tiles. The Mihrimah
Sultan Mosque, another mosque remaining from
the sixteenth century, is the mosque with the
most light in Istanbul. The mosque has a total
of 161 stained glass windows on its four façades.
The Topkapi Palace,
which served the function of being the political
center of the Ottoman Sultans for a period of
400 years, is located on a hill dominating the
Bosphorus, the Marmara Sea and the Golden Horn.
Today, the palace is a museum worth seeing,
with its world famous Chinese porcelains, thrones
ornamented with gold and precious stones, the
costumes of the Sultans, jewelry, handwritten
books and sacred pieces. Another magnificent
palace is the Dolmabahçe Palace with its 600
meter front on the Bosphorus. The palace which
was built by Sultan Abdülmecid in the mid-nineteenth
century, is surrounded by 56 columns and is
famous for its ceremony hall, illuminated by
a 4.5 ton chandelier.
The most magnificent
architectural work of the Byzantine era in the
city is the Ayasofya (Saint Sophia) Museum.
The Ayasofya, which was built by Emperor Constantine
as a basilica in the fourth century, was destroyed
in a fire, but later Emperor Justinian had it
rebuilt in the sixth century. The dome has a
height of 55 meters and a width of 31 meters.
It is the oldest and the forth largest among
domes of the cathedrals after the St. Peter's
in Rome, St. Paul's in London, and the Duomo
in Milan. The Kariye Museum also displays the
beauties of Byzantine art with its mosaics and
frescoes. These frescoes which were made in
the fourteenth century, influenced and guided
the European Renaissance. The Yerebatan Cistern
with its 336 columns constructed by the Byzantines
in the sixth century to meet the water needs
of the city is worth seeing. The Sultanahmet
Square, one of the most important squares in
the city, is ornamented with the Dikilitas (Obelisk
of Theodosius), the bronze Serpentine Column
and the Column of Constantine from the Byzantine
Period.
Besides these,
there are many more museums and monuments in
the city. Among these are the Istanbul Archeological
Museums, the Atatürk Museum, the Sadberk Hanim
Museum, the Mosaic Museum, the Tower of Leander
(Kiz Kulesi), the Galata Tower, the Rumelian
and Anatolian Fortresses and the Istanbul City
Walls.
The Kapali Çarsi
(Covered Bazaar) which dates back to the fifteenth
century, has 4 000 shops today and is one of
the places frequently visited by tourists. Jewelry,
antiques, carpets, silver and copper souvenirs,
leather and suede clothes, wood-carvings and
carvings with mother-of-pearl are sold at this
bazaar. Furthermore, it is possible to find
every type of spice at the Misir Çarsisi (Egyptian
Bazaar) constructed by Hatice Sultan in the
seventeenth century. Istanbul is also a modern
center for shopping. Along with the shopping
malls, such as the Ataköy Galleria, the Akmerkez,
the Capitol, the Carousel and the Car- refour;
Istiklal, Rumeli and Bagdat Avenues are the
most distinguished shopping areas of the city.
Turkey: Crossroads
of Continents
The Republic of
Turkey is a country located at a point where
the three continents of the old world (Asia,
Africa and Europe) are closest to each other
and where Asia and Europe meet. Because of its
location, Anatolia has always been important
throughout history and is the birthplace of
many great civilizations.
The surface area
of Turkey including the lakes is 814 578 km
2 . Out of the total land, 97 % is in Asia and
this part is called Anatolia or Asia Minor,
3 % is in Europe which is called Thrace.
The population
of Turkey is more than 64 million. Turkey has
been called iathe cradle of civilizationsl_.
The world's first town, a neolithic city at
Çatalhöyük, dates back to 6 500 B.C. from the
days of Çatalhöyük up to the present, Turkey
boasts a rich culture that through the centuries
has made a lasting impression on modern civilization.
The heir to many centuries of cultures makes
Turkey a paradise of information and cultural
wealth. Hattis, Hittites, Phrygians, Urartians,
Lycians, Lydians, Ionians, Persians, Macedonians,
Romans, Byzantines, Seljuks, and Ottomans have
all made important contributions Turkish history,
and ancient sites and ruins scattered throughout
the country give proof of each civilization's
unique distinction.
Further information
on Turkey and Istanbul can be obtained through
the following web sites:
