Crossroads Tour – The Topkapi Palace

• The Topkapi Palace, built between 1460-78, is a walled complex covering 700,000 square meters, comprised of three courtyards, several gardens and all the buildings you would expect to see in a royal administrative city. It was the residence of the Ottoman sultans until the middle of the 19th century, and also served as the administrative and educational center for the state. It became a museum in 1924, two years after the Ottoman monarchy came to an end.

I arrive about 2 hours before closing. I wait in a line that eats up twenty valuable minutes, and enter the Topkapi Palace through the Gate of Salutation, whose iconic towers were built during the reign of Suleyman the Magnificent. 

• The sultan alone could ride on horseback through this gate, and the palace women were allowed to remain in their carriages, but all others had to pass through on foot (as I do today), passing under a calligraphed inscription that proclaims the tenant of Islam: “There is no god but God; and Muhammed is the prophet of God.” 

This gate opens out onto the Second Courtyard which is also called the Council Square, where coronations, receptions and other affairs of state were held. The Tower of Justice (used as a council chamber for the Grand Viziers and military judges since the 19th century) and the Imperial Chancery (dating from the reign of Suleyman the Magnificent, early 16th century) are also located here.

I walk past the Treasury, which is now a Weapons Museum, in search of the Palace Kitchen, which houses Turkish glassware and Asian porcelain collections. Disappointed to find it closed, I head towards the Carriage Gate, the gateway to the Harem Apartments, the private residence of the sultan and his family.

• Built in the 16th century and expanded over the next three centuries, the Apartments are notable as a showcase of architectural history. They contain more than 300 rooms, nine bathhouses, two mosques, a hospital, dormitory and laundry. The Harem also served as a recruitment center for young children who were trained for state service. 

After passing through the Carriage Gate, I walk into the Domed Cabinets, where documents referencing Mecca and Medina were kept. Next is the Fountain Hall, rebuilt in 1665 after a fire, and dizzying in its wall-to-wall, floor-to-ceiling tile work. Then through the Courtyard of the Black Eunuchs, who guarded the wives and concubines. After half an hour, I stop taking photos. Baha was not kidding. The palace is immense, room after room after hallway, linking to courtyards to even more rooms…

I pass through the Main Gate, which leads to the sultan’s private apartments, the Gallery of the Concubines, and the Courtyard of the Sultana Mother. Each apartment is two stories, though public access appears to only be available to those rooms at the ground level.

• The majority of girls brought to the Topkapi as concubines were actually employed as servants. Those who were pretty and intelligent would be educated in reading, writing, music, religion, palace etiquette and the arts of the courtesan. From this pool, those who became favorites or whom bore the sultan a child, would become his wives and would receive letters patent, new dresses and separate chambers, and would receive additional training in Imperial traditions.  Wives founded charities, commissioned mosques, and devoted themselves to good works in keeping with their conversion to Islam.
• There was a complex ranking structure within the Harem, defining specific roles, duties and apartments for every girl,from the lowest servant to the Favorites, Wives, and the Sultana Mother. The Koran required that women slaves be well looked after, stating “Furnish them with anything you eat and wear, and never treat them badly.” They received a per diem commensurate with their position as well as gifts at weddings, birthdays and festivals. Women also had the right to leave the harem after having lived there for nine years, and would receive a trousseau and assistance in finding a husband. Even after their departure from the harem, they remained under palace protection until their death. 

I came back from the Topkapi with enough information about the Harem to write a comparative study of the courtesans of Venice and Istanbul…

The Courtyard of the Favorites housed the wives, in close proximity to the Sultana Mother. Each Favorite had a private room on this second floor, with a fireplace and enameled closets. Those rooms overlooking the Golden Horn also had separate toilets and hamamis. The lower level dormitories housed the concubine servants.

The Sultana Mother’s apartments were also heavily tiled, and included a fireplace and a fountain in every room. In addition to living quarters, the Sultana’s living area also included a prayer room, bathhouse and toilet, making it an independently functioning structure from the rest of the harem apartments.

I cannot remember which of the apartments had this beautiful dome, painted with vines. I was so inspired by the dome that I replicated the design as a hat a few weeks later…

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The Privy Room of Sultan Murad III was designed and built by Mimar Sinan in 1579 and was the sultan’s official and private apartment. It is covered with Iznik tile and the room is encircled with a white-on-blue calligraphed band reciting the Verse of the Throne from the Kor’an. It is quite spectacular even in this dim light.

I duck into what would be the first of several gift shops here, and find a book of Suleyman’s poetry. The palace will close soon so I run through rooms of jewelry; coppers, brasses and silver works; weapons and helms, catching the briefest glimpse of the Topkapi Dagger with three enormous emeralds set into its handle. The textile collection is much smaller than I expected, but most of the pieces are laid out flat which gives the perfect view of their construction.

A 17th century Italian velvet that I watched being produced on a video at the Lanterna in Genoa, is here, in the form of a Sultan’s coat. Italian silks and velvets were highly prized by the Ottoman sultans and princes. There are several inner caftans here as well – collarless, and tight fitting, with gussets running from waist to hem. Caftans were worn over a loose robe called an entari, which in turn were worn over shalwar trousers, with a wide waist which was gathered in with a sash which passed through drawstrings on the waistband. In addition to Italian velvets and silks, a metallic brocade called serâser (a cloth of silver/gold alloys produced in Istanbul during the 16th century) and kemha, (a compound weave blending polychrome silks with metallic threads) were also worn.

Towards the 18th century, the heavy silks and velvets gave way to satins, taffeta, gezi (a thick silk), sandal (a cotton/silk blend) and selimiye, a silk produced in Istanbul. I loved the talismanic shirts, which reminded me of the Taoist caftans from some of the Mongolian exhibits I had seen. Verses from the Kor’an and other prayers were meant to protect the wearer from illnesses and enemies, and are thought to have been prepared through a combined effort of the court astrologers and theologians.

I spend the remaining daylight wandering around the grounds, weaving my way through pavilions and admiring the carved marble plaques that line the sidewalks along the Royal Kitchen. Many are in various states of repair and restoration.

I exit the Topkapi grounds through the Imperial Gate, capped with beautiful gold Arabic script against a blue background.  The roundel on the archway is the signature of Sultan Abdulaziz (1861-76). Above it, “Help from God and a speedy victory” which was also the battle cry of the Jannisaries. On the other side, the following script: 

• “By the grace and assent of god and with the aim of establishing peace and tranquility. This auspicious citadel was built and erected in the blessed month of Ramadan in the year 883 (1478 CE) at the command of the son of Sultan Murad, son of Sultan Mehmed Khan, the sultan of the lands and the emperor of the seas, the shadow of God extending over men and djinn, the deputy of God in the East and in the West, the champion of the water and the land, the conqueror of Constantinople and father of that conquest Sultan Mehmed, may God make his reign eternal and exalt his abode above that of the highest stars in the firmament.”

If I ever came back to Istanbul, I would want to spend at least two days here.

You can see more photos (in larger format) at Daveno Travels.

Back at the hotel, I am greeted by an animated young waiter who is working the sidewalk in front of the hotel. The Hotel Han is right next door to the Barbecue House, which seems to be a pretty popular eatery. I walk up to the large pictorial menu and ask the waiter for a suggestion. After some back-and-forth banter, he seats me at a table on the sidewalk. A very short time later, a large sampler plate arrives, covered with chicken, steak, lamb, and two other meats I could not identify; grilled peppers and tomatoes, a salad of shredded carrots, lettuce and spiced pickled cabbage; rice, fries, pizza and a boat shaped bread filled with cheese. A half a piece of focaccia serves as a trencher below the meats.  An Efes beer to wash it down with, and a dinner show, free of charge as I watch with amusement the young waiter convince passers by to pull off the sidewalk and take a seat.

Thankful for the course corrections of the day, with a happy mind and full belly, I look forward to a full night’s sleep and new adventures tomorrow…