Topkapı palace Istanbul/Turkey

Topkapı Palace (Turkish: Topkapı Sarayı[1] or in Ottoman Turkish: طوپقپو سرايى) is a large palace in Istanbul, Turkey, that was the primary residence of the Ottoman Sultans for approximately 400 years (1465-1856) of their 624-year reign.[2] As well as a royal residence, the palace was a setting for state occasions and royal entertainments. It is now a major tourist attraction and contains important holy relics of the Muslim world including the Prophet Muhammed's cloak and sword.[2] The Topkapı Palace is among the monuments contained within the "Historic Areas of Istanbul", which became a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1985, and is described in Criterion iv as "the best example[s] of ensembles of palaces [...] of the Ottoman period."[3] Construction began in 1459, ordered by Sultan Mehmed II, the conqueror of Byzantine Constantinople. The palace complex consists of four main courtyards and many smaller buildings. At its peak, the palace was home to as many as 4,000 people,[2] and covered a large area with a long shoreline. The complex was expanded over the centuries, with major renovations after the 1509 earthquake and the 1665 fire. The palace contained mosques, a hospital, bakeries, and a mint.[2] The name translates as "Cannon gate Palace" from a nearby gate which has since been destroyed. From the end of the 17th century the Topkapı Palace gradually lost its importance as the Sultans preferred to spend more time in their new palaces along the Bosporus. In 1856, Sultan Abdül Mecid I decided to move the court to the newly built Dolmabahçe Palace, the first European-style palace in the city. Some functions, such as the imperial treasury, the library, and the mint were retained in the Topkapı Palace. Following the end of the Ottoman Empire in 1921, the Topkapı Palace was transformed by a government decree dated April 3, 1924 into a museum of the imperial era. The Topkapı Palace Museum is administered by the Ministry of Culture and Tourism. The palace complex has hundreds of rooms and chambers, but only the most important are accessible to the public today. The complex is guarded by officials of the ministry as well as armed guards of the Turkish military. The palace includes many fine examples of Ottoman architecture. It contains large collections of porcelain, robes, weapons, shields, armor, Ottoman miniatures, Islamic calligraphic manuscripts and murals, as well as a display of Ottoman treasures and jewelry. [2]

Imperial Gate The Imperial Gate (Bâb-ı Hümâyûn)The main street leading to the palace is the Byzantine processional Mese avenue, today Divan Yolu (Street of the Council). The Mese was used for imperial processions during the Byzantine and Ottoman era. It leads directly to the Hagia Sophia and takes a turn northwest towards the palace square where the landmark Fountain of Ahmed III stands. The sultan would enter the palace through the Imperial Gate (Turkish: Bâb-ı Hümâyûn or Latin: Porta Augusta), also known as "Gate of the Sultan" (Turkish: Saltanat Kapısı) located to the south of the palace.[15] This massive gate, originally dating from 1478, is now covered in 19th-century marble. The massiveness of this stone gate accentuates its defensive character. Its central arch leads to a high-domed passage. Gilded Ottoman calligraphy adorns the structure at the top, with verses from the Qur'an and tughras of the sultans. Identified tughras are of Sultan Mehmed II and Abdül Aziz I, who renovated the gate.[16] One of the inscriptions at the gate proclaims: By the Grace of God, and by His approval, the foundations of this auspicious castle were laid, and its parts were solidly joined together to strengthen peace and tranquility [...] May God make eternal his empire, and exalt his residence above the most lucid stars of the firmament. On each side of the hall are rooms for the guard. The gate was open from morning prayer until the last evening prayer. According to old documents, there was a wooden apartment above the gate area until the second half of the 19th century.[17] It was used first as a pavilion by Mehmed, later as a depository for the properties of those who died inside the palace without heirs and eventually as the receiving department of the treasury. It was also used as a vantage point for the ladies of the harem on special occasions.[18] The Imperial Gate is the main entrance into the First Courtyard. The four courtyards lead to each other and during the Ottoman Empire, each became steadily more exclusive leading to the Fourth Courtyard, which was the sultan's private courtyard.

The First Courtyard (I. Avlu or Alay Meydanı) spans Seraglio Point and is surrounded by high walls.[19] This First Courtyard functioned as an outer precinct or park and is the largest of all the courtyards of the palace. The steep slopes leading towards the sea had already been terraced under Byzantine rule. The First Courtyard contained purely functional structures and some royal ones, many of which don't exist today.[20] The structures that remain are the former Imperial Mint (Darphane-i Âmire, constructed in 1727), the church of Hagia Irene and various fountains. The Byzantine church of Hagia Irene was never destroyed by the conquering Ottomans and survived by being used as a storehouse and imperial armoury.[21] This court was also known as the Court of the Janissaries or the Parade Court. Visitors entering the palace would follow the path towards the Gate of Salutation and the Second Courtyard of the palace. Court officials and janissaries would line the path dressed in their best garbs and waiting. Visitors had to dismount from the horses between the First and the Second Courtyard

Gate of Salutation The Gate of Salutation (Bâb-üs Selâm), entrance to the Second courtyard of Topkapı Palace The Gate of Salutation by Abdullah Frères, 1890The large Gate of Salutation (Arabic: Bâb-üs Selâm), also known as the Middle Gate (Turkish: Orta Kapı), leads into the palace and the Second Courtyard. This crenelated gate has two large octagonal pointed towers. The date of construction of this gate is not clear, since the architecture of the towers is of Byzantine influence rather than Ottoman. It is speculated that the gate emulates the Gate of St. Barbara (Cannon Gate), which used to be the royal seaside entrance to the palace gardens from the shore of the Bosphorus.[23] An inscription at the door dates this gate to at least 1542. In a miniature painting from the Hünername from 1584, a low-roofed structure with three windows above the arch between the towers is clearly visible,[24] probably a guards' hall that has since disappeared.[25] The gate is richly decorated on both sides and in the upper part with religious inscriptions and monograms of sultans. No one apart for official purpose and foreign dignitaries were allowed passage through the gate. All visitors had to dismount by the Middle Gate, since only the sultan was allowed to enter the gate on horseback.[26] This was also a Byzantine tradition taken from the Chalke Gate of the Great Palace. The Fountain of the Executioner (Cellat Çeşmesi) is where the executioner purportedly washed his hands and sword after a decapitation, although there is disagreement if this is indeed that particular fountain. It is located on the right side when facing the Gate of Salutation from the First Courtyard.[27]

The trees in the Topkapi Palace complex are remarkable, as many have fallen victim to a fungus that has completely hollowed out their trunks, over the course of centuries. The trees nonetheless survive and remain standing. In other cases, two trees of a different kind have grown and fused together, such as a fig tree that grew in the hollow of another tree and effectively fused with it. This phenomenon can be seen in the second courtyard.

Circumcision Room Interior of the Circumcision RoomIn 1640 Sultan Ibrahim I added the Circumcision Room (Sünnet Odası), a summer kiosk (Yazlik Oda) dedicated to the circumcision of young princes, which is a primary rite of passage in Islam. Its interior and exterior are decorated with a mixed collection of rare recycled tiles such as the blue tiles with flower motifs at the exterior. The most important of these are the blue and white tile panels influenced by far-eastern ceramics on the chamber facade, dated 1529. These once embellished ceremonial buildings of Sultan Suleiman I, such as the building of the Council Hall and the Inner Treasury (both in the Second Courtyard) and the Throne Room (in the Third Courtyard). They were moved here out of nostalgia and reverence for the golden age of his reign. These tiles then served as prototypes for the decoration of the Yerevan and Baghdad kiosks. The room itself is symmetrically proportioned and relatively spacious for the palace, with windows, each with a small fountain. The windows above contain some stained-glass panels. On the right side of the entrance stands a fireplace with a gilded hood. Sultan Ibrahim also built the arcaded roof around the Chamber of the Holy Mantle and the upper terrace between this room and the Baghdad kiosk. The royal architect Hasan Ağa under Sultan Murat IV constructed during 1635-1636 the Yerevan Kiosk (Revan Köşkü) and in 1638-1639 the Baghdad Kiosk (Bağdat Köşkü) to celebrate the Ottoman victories at Yerevan and Baghdad. Both contain most of their original decoration,[70] with projecting eaves, a central dome and interior with recessed cupboards and woodwork with inlaid nacre tesserae. Both are based on the classical four-iwan plan with sofas filling the rectangular bays.

Privy Chamber of Ahmed IIINext to it is the small but very colourful Privy Chamber of Ahmed III (III. Ahmed Has Odası) with walls painted with panels of floral designs and bowls of fruit and with an intricate tiles fireplace (ocak).[87] This room is therefore also known as the Fruit Room (Yemis Odası) and was probably used for dining purposes.

Imperial Hall Imperial Hall with the throne of the sultanThe Imperial Hall (Hünkâr Sofası), also known as the Imperial Sofa, Throne Room Within or Hall of Diversions, is a domed hall in the Harem, believed to have been built in the late 16th century. It has the largest dome in the palace. The hall served as the official reception hall of the sultan as well as for the entertainment of the Harem. Here the sultan received his confidants, guests, his mother, his first wife (Hasseki), consorts, and his children. Entertainments, paying of homage during religious festivals, and wedding ceremonies took place here in the presence of the members of the dynasty.[83] After the Great Harem Fire of 1666, the hall was renovated in the rococo style during the reign of Sultan Osman III. The tile belt surrounding the walls bearing calligraphic inscriptions were riveted with 18th century blue and white Delftware and mirrors of Venetian glass. But the domed arch and pendantives still bear classical paintings dating from the original construction.[84] In the hall stands the sultan's throne. The gallery was occupied by the consorts of the sultan, headed by the Queen Mother. The gilded chairs are a present of Emperor Wilhelm II of Germany, while the clocks are a gift of Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom. A pantry, where musical instruments are exhibited, opens to the Imperial Hall, which provides access into the sultan's private apartments. A secret door behind a mirror allowed the sultan a safe passage. One door admits to the Queen Mother’s apartments, another to the sultan's hammam. The opposite doors lead to the small dining chamber (rebuilt by Ahmed III) and the great bedchamber,[85] while the other admits to a series of ante-chambers, including the room with the fountain (Çeşmeli Sofa), which were all retiled and redecorated in the 17th century

Baths of the Sultan and the Queen Mother Baths of the Sultan with gilded grillThe next rooms are the Baths of the Sultan and the Queen Mother (Hünkâr ve Vâlide Hamamları). This double bath dates from the late 16th century and consists of multiple rooms.[82] It was redecorated in the rococo style in the middle of the 18th century. Both baths present the same design, consisting of a caldarium, a tepidarium and a frigidarium.[82] Each room either has a dome, or the ceilings are at some point glassed in a honeycomb structure to let the natural sunlight in. The floor is clad in white and grey marble. The marble tub with an ornamental fountain in the caldarium and the gilded iron grill are characteristic features. The golden lattice work was to protect the bathing sultan or his mother from murder attempts. The sultan's bath was decorated by Sinan with high-quality İznik polychrome tiles. But much of the tile decoration of the harem, from structures damaged by the fire of 1574, was recycled by Sultan Ahmed I for decoration in his new Sultan Ahmed Mosque in Istanbul. The walls are now either clad in marble or white-washed.

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