A Thousand and One Nights in a Day

Middle East » Turkey » Marmara » Istanbul
August 10th 2007

Published: September 13th 2008

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explorerkeith

In the Third Courtyard

The columns and domes and all of the green spaces made the third courtyard an inviting place.

If I close my eyes and allow the wonderful stories from ‘A Thousand Nights and a Night’ to flow into my mind I form a fantastical image of graceful domes and minarets that pierce the sky, of lovely pointed arches and intricate tile work and lush gardens hidden behind towering stone walls. It is a land filled with flying carpets, genies in lamps, beautiful, veiled princesses and unimaginable riches. It is a world where magic and mystery are the norm, where every man wears a bejeweled turban and wields a scimitar and heroes are regularly made from ordinary people. It is a beautiful picture of a fabled land that only exists in the deepest recesses of my overactive imagination, or so I thought! On my third day in Istanbul I found an amazing place that, until that moment, only existed in my mind, a place straight out of the pages of the Arabian Nights.

The magical place I had discovered went by the name of Topkapi Palace. The palace was actually a completely enclosed and self sufficient city within a city, hidden behind huge, fortified stone walls. For over four hundred years Topkapi Palace served as the home and seat

The Mirhab of the Blue Mosque

The interior of the mosque was magnificent and peaceful.

of imperial power for the sultans of the far-reaching Ottoman Empire. From their opulent palace fortress overlooking the Sea of Marmara and the Golden Horn, the great sultans like Mehmet II, Selim the Grim and Suleyman the Magnificent conquered much of the classical world, stretching their imperial borders east into Persia, south into the Arabian Peninsula and North Africa and westward to the Gates of Vienna. At its height of importance, more than four thousand people, including the sultan and his family, the ladies of the harem, eunuchs and concubines, servants, janissaries and Agas, lived within the palace walls. Most matters of state were performed in the palace’s inner courtyards, which were off limits to all but the most important of people. When the Ottoman Empire fell and the Turkish Republic was born under the leadership of Ataturk, the palace was converted into an imperial museum in order to preserve the grandeur of the once powerful empire. Its buildings and gardens, its library and its vast treasure trove of artifacts and riches all became accessible to the general public for the first time. As a result, the visitors flowed in from all over the world making Topkapi Palace one of

Imperial Gate

This is the main gate through the fortified stone walls of the palace. The view is from the inside looking out towards the Blue Mosque.

the largest tourist attractions in Turkey and one of the finest historical experiences in the world. I knew there was no way of avoiding the crowds, but there was no way I was going to miss it either.

I started the day just as I had started the previous day with a delicious Turkish breakfast and a sweeping view of the Sea of Marmara. It was looking like another perfect day, so I gathered my things and I retraced my steps back to the grand Imperial Gate of Topkapi Palace. I was pleasantly surprised when I reached the palace walls and discovered that the sea of tour buses that had besieged the area the day before were nowhere to be found. I walked past the ornamental fountain, pausing to admire the grand Aya Sofya, and then I turned and passed beneath the huge, marble façade of the arched gateway and entered the realm of the sultans. I was in the first courtyard, the Court of the Janissaries, which was a large park-like space with trees and open lawns that stretched down to the sea. I slowly walked along the sidewalk taking in the amazing scene: There were flashy tourists

Beneath the Dome, Again

In contrast to the Aya Sofya, the interior of the Blue Mosque is wide open.

walking side by side with conservative Muslim families, there were guards and grounds keepers preserving the natural beauty and peace of the park and there were smiling men peddling their wares to all who passed by. It was a pleasant walk through history and the crowds were not too oppressive, but I couldn’t help but wonder what the grounds would have looked like more than four hundred years before under the rule of Suleyman the Magnificent - The paintings and prints I saw later in the day helped me complete the picture. Ahead of me through the trees I could see another gate. The second gate, the Gate of Salutation, was completely different than the first. It had two octagonal towers capped with steep conical roofs and a crenulated rampart connecting the two with a gate between them - Its style was more in line with what I would expect to find in Northern Europe or Disneyland, but it was beautiful none the less.

Before I reached the Gate of Salutation I had to stop at a long stone building with several ticket windows and pay my admission. I couldn’t complain - It used to take an invitation from

The Courtyard of the Janissaries

The lovely garden like first courtyard is a long, shady park that leads to the second gate.

the Sultan to get into the inner courtyards of the palace and nobody that wasn’t on official business or a visiting foreign dignitary got an invitation. In the days of the Ottoman Empire only the sultan could ride his horse through the second gate; all other visitors had to dismount before they reached the Gate of Salutation. I joined the line of eager tourists forming at the gate and I slowly made my way between the towers and into the second courtyard, stopping briefly for a security check. The pavilion I found myself standing in on the other side of the gate was truly spectacular, in fact, nothing I had seen in Turkey to that point came close to matching the beauty of the intricate calligraphy and golden scroll work on the white ceiling - It was an impressive sight and, judging by the number of upward facing glances, I was not the only person who felt so - Of course, in hindsight, that first magnificent pavilion was only a very simple taste of what was to come.

The second courtyard was an impressive sight. It was roughly rectangular in shape with large open spaces of grass and huge

The Gate of Salutation

The lovely second gate of the palace.

shade trees. A lovely colonnaded walkway and low, domed buildings surrounded the courtyard. Looking down the long path that split the courtyard in two, towards the far end, I saw the impressively ornate Gate of Felicity, from where the sultan would hold audiences with foreign dignitaries. Off to the left side of the courtyard were the former Janissary quarters, the palace hospital, the bakery and the Imperial Harem. Off to the right side of the courtyard rose the imposing palace kitchen. Somewhere in the middle of the courtyard, hidden beneath the landscaping, was a Byzantine cistern that supplied clean water to the palace just as it had for the Byzantine acropolis that had occupied the same strategic promontory before it. I stood back and tried to roll back the centuries to a time when peacocks and gazelles roamed freely through the shady spaces of the second courtyard under the watchful eyes of the fierce, turban clad janissaries - The image that formed in my mind was not unlike the landscape from the Arabian Nights.

I started walking around the courtyard in a counter clockwise direction. I first stopped to admire several well preserved horse carriages from the imperial fleet,

Byzantine Ruins

The palace grounds are littered with remnants of the former Byzantine acropolis that occupied the site before the palace.

which were housed behind a pane of glass in the former ‘outer stables’, and then I continued following the colonnade towards the huge kitchen complex. All along the arcade, Byzantine and Roman artifacts that had been found on the palace grounds throughout the years were on display, highlighting the ancient history of the site. I walked through an open doorway in the long building, passed through a short hallway and entered a long paved way that separated the kitchen buildings for the full length of the courtyard. I entered the first door I came to and was amazed at what I found inside. I didn’t expect to find a priceless treasure in the kitchen, but there it was; display case after display case of fine Chinese, Japanese and Turkish porcelain. The ‘china’ on display, which spanned nearly seven hundred years from the early Song dynasty through the Ming and Qing dynasties, was apparently only a small portion of the more than ten thousand pieces at Topkapi Palace. It was clear that the sultans spared no expense to surround themselves with the finest of everything - Every piece of far-eastern porcelain at Topkapi had to traverse the Silk Road, crossing the

In the Kitchen Corridor

This was the main drag for all those that labored endlessly in Topkapi Palace's kitchens.

entire continent of Asia on the back of a camel, or sail across the wild Indian Ocean in the hold of early sailing vessels, neither of which was an easy journey.

I left the treasure trove of porcelain and entered another portion of the kitchens. There I found the kitchen as it would have been during Topkapi Palace’s golden days. There were giant iron pots and pans and huge spoons and ladles. The whitewashed walls led up to graceful, domed ceilings, which in turn led up to the huge chimneys that would have funneled the smoke from the cooking fires out of the cooking area. By today’s standards the kitchen was primitive, but in its day it was the largest and finest kitchen in the entire Ottoman Empire. The kitchen staff was capable of producing more than six thousand meals a day, feeding the sultan and his family, the ladies of the Harem and all of the palace staff - It would have been an endless job for the more than eight hundred people that labored there every day. The ten domed buildings that made up the kitchen once consisted of the kitchen, the beverage kitchen, the creamery, the

Fine China

One of the many pieces of priceless 'china' at the Topkapi Palace kitchen.

dessert kitchen and store rooms, in addition to the palace school, dormitories, baths and harem (women’s quarters). Now the many rooms of the kitchen showcase different aspects of the food services - In addition to the porcelain rooms and the kitchen itself, there was a room containing many fine examples of the silver services and other silver works of art that had been gifts from foreign dignitaries. I left the kitchens and reentered the courtyard. I continued following the colonnaded walkway until I reached the Gate of Felicity, where I stopped for a while to take in the scenery in the courtyard and the lovely artwork adorning the gate.

I followed the masses through the Gate of Felicity and entered the inner domain of the sultan. On the other side of the gate a small, ornately decorated building blocked all views of the courtyard beyond. I followed the line of visitors up a few steps onto the black and white, mosaic-tiled floor of the colonnaded verandah that encircled the building. I paused for a moment to admire the lovely Islamic calligraphy and the beautiful arched doorway, with its intricately joined arch stones of alternating colors. I walked past the

Ming?

I can't tell the difference between the porcelain from the Ming Dynasty and other dynasties, but I loved them all.

golden ‘gift window’, where I would have left my gift to the sultan, and the now silent Suleiman I fountain and I entered the building’s dark interior. The Audience Chamber, as the building was known, was where the ‘throne’ of the sultan was located. It was within its walls that the sultan personally learned of the successes and failures of his viziers. Apparently he would bestow riches and powerful positions on those who brought him good news and he would swiftly strangle those who had badly failed him - He had deaf-mute eunuchs standing by for just such an occasion. It was also where he would hold personal audiences with foreign ambassadors. Due to its important function, the Audience Chamber was decorated in a way that highlighted the sultan’s power and importance. The ornate, canopied throne was covered in luxurious cushions and rich fabrics of silk and gold with countless jewels sewn into them. The inner chamber was certainly a lovely space, but the thick Plexiglas that separated me from the jewels left the room feeling a bit cramped and the huge line of people prevented me from lingering too long - I suppose I will have to rely on

Amazing Porcelain

Apparently the priceless collection of porcelain on display is only a portion of the more than ten thousand pieces at Topkapi.

my imagination to reveal the true magnificence of the room during the days of the sultans. I exited the throne room through the back door and headed down into the third courtyard.

I walked slowly along the tranquil paths of the shady third courtyard. All of the columns and pavilions and the garden-like spaces made for a lovely walk - If I were to design the perfect inner sanctuary for my home and money was no object, the final result would be similar. I stopped to explore the lovely, tiled interior of the Library, which sadly didn’t have any books in it, and then I headed over towards the graceful domes and columns of the Conqueror’s Pavilion. Inside the Conqueror’s pavilion was the Imperial Treasury, the store house of the most important treasures from the Ottoman Empire. I walked to where the entrance of the treasury was and there I discovered the reason behind all of the peace and quiet I had been experiencing as I explored the courtyard - Everyone else was in the vast line that led into the treasure rooms. My first thought when I saw the line was, ‘I don’t need to see a bunch

The Kitchen

Though spartan by today's standards, this was the finest kitchen in the empire, capable of producing more than six thousand meals a day.

of treasure.’ Life on the road had forced me to adjust my views towards things like money and gold and jewels, none of which have any real value other than they are easier to carry than a bunch of chickens and cows. I had, instead, begun treasuring useful things that actually had value like tools, bags, clothing and my water purifier - I know, without money I wouldn’t have any of those things unless, of course, I had the chickens to barter with. I decided to skip the treasure room and I headed down a ramp beneath one of the buildings into a garden like area on the other side.

This last area, while not technically a courtyard, was filled with lovely buildings and sweeping views of the Bosphorous. I poked my head into a small mosque, which was closed for renovations and then I walked over to the marble rail and looked out across the water. The view from the patio was amazing. I could see all of the huge ships plying the narrow waterway on their way to the Black Sea or the Mediterranean. In the distance I could see a huge suspension bridge that spanned the

Silver

The silver exhibit in the kitchen area was amazing.

gap between the two continents. I remember wondering if the sultans had stood at that same rail and watched as their vast fleet of sailing ships and famous privateers such as Barbarossa (aka Redbeard) sailed into Istanbul’s famous natural harbor, the Golden Horn, with goods from all over the world in their holds. It was fun to think about, but the smells of food rising up from the expensive package tourist restaurant on a terrace just below me set my stomach to rumbling and I decided to move on. I explored a bit more of the grounds and then I walked back into the third courtyard.

There had been something bothering me ever since I decided to skip the treasury. It was an unanswered question, a curiosity, one that would bother me forever if I didn’t do something about it - Were the images I had formed regarding the vast treasures in the Arabian Nights accurate? More importantly, would I act like Bugs Bunny or Daffy Duck when confronted with all of those riches? I decided that I had to know, so I reversed my earlier decision and I walked back over to join the masses in the line

Gifts of Silver

Many of the items on display were gifts to the sultan from foreign dignitaries.

for the treasure room. As luck would have it the line was gone! I put my camera away at the urging of the guard and I walked towards the door. There was no need to utter ‘open sesame’, the door was already open. I strolled into the dark interior of the treasure room with the indifference of Bugs, but it didn’t last long. Over the next half hour I slowly walked from exhibit to exhibit, my eyes getting wider in amazement with each step. There were display cases filled with piles of golf ball sized emeralds and other precious stones, there were exquisite gifts from Czars and Shahs, a few of the cases had bejeweled swords and muskets and armor, one of which contained the famous, emerald incrusted ‘Topkapi Dagger’ that had been made as a gift for the shah of Persia who was assassinated before he received it. Another exhibit was of two massive, solid gold candlesticks, each weighing more than forty kilograms and inlayed with over six thousand cut diamonds, from the Kaaba in the holy city of Mecca - They had been evacuated ahead of advancing troops during World War I. In one room was the ‘Spoon-maker’s

The Chimneys

The kitchen's chimneys are a prominent feature of the palace's skyline.

Diamond’, which was a massive diamond that was apparently purchased from a man at a bazaar who thought it was a worthless piece of crystal. Bejeweled thrones, inlayed Koran covers that had belonged to the sultans, a golden shrine that used to contain the cloak worn by the prophet Mohammed, even the gold and rock-crystal encased head of John the Baptist and his forearm and hand, sheathed in gold, could be found in the treasury. I paused for a moment at an open, colonnaded verandah that overlooked the sea and then I continued through the last room of the treasury - Apparently the items on display were only the most important items of the vast treasure trove at Topkapi! I walked out of the treasury in a jeweled haze. There were diamonds in my eyes and treasure in my mind. I had answered the questions I had when I entered the treasury. The vast riches turned out to be more magnificent than I had imagined them and I suppose I fall somewhere between Bugs and Daffy - I wasn’t as indifferent as I had hoped I would be when faced with all of that treasure, but I didn’t jump on

The Gate of Felicity

The ornate Gate of Felicity was where the sultan would perform formal audiences. The banner of the Prophet Muhammad would have been displayed on the rock in the foreground.

the guards shouting, “MINE, MINE, IT IS ALL MINE!!!!”, either.

It took me a few minutes to shake the haze that had overtaken me in the treasury. The hunger pangs in my stomach started to cloud my judgment and I decided to move a bit quicker as I made my way towards the Imperial Harem. I decided to skip the Imperial costume gallery, which, in hindsight, would have been very interesting to see, and I only gave a cursory glance inside the portrait gallery, which gave me an image to place with each of the sultans I had been reading about. I was forced to skip the Miniatures and Portrait Gallery, because it was closed indefinitely. Had I known then what I learned shortly after I had said farewell to Turkey then I would have wanted to see the Miniature Gallery over every other exhibit at Topkapi - It is the home of the famous and controversial ‘Piri Reis’ map. Piri Reis was a famous Turkish admiral and cartographer who made a world map that showed a detailed and fairly accurate representation of both North Africa’s and South America’s Atlantic coastline and another point of land at the bottom

The Audience Chamber

Note the ornate stonework of the doorway. The golden grill on the left side of the door is the 'gift window' and just off of the the right side is the Suleiman I fountain.

that some say is the ice free coastline of Antarctica. Piri Reis said that he had built the map using several earlier maps, some of Ptolemaic origins (from the lost Library of Alexandria perhaps?) The controversial part of the map revolves around the depiction of the ‘Antarctic’ coastline, which was still three hundred years from being ‘discovered’ in 1513 when the map was drawn. Some people believe that the depiction of the ice free coast of Antarctica means that Piri Reis relied on an already ancient map from a long lost, seafaring civilization, since the coast of Antarctica has been concealed in ice for many thousands of years. Others believe that the southern land mass is nothing more than the southern coast of South America and Tierra del Fuego skewed to fit on the gazelle skin that the map is drawn on. Regardless of what is depicted at the bottom of the map, it is still considered to be the first world map. For cartographically minded people such as myself, the Piri Reis Map is one of the more important treasures in the world and I was less than one hundred feet from it and I didn’t know it! I

The Library

Though there were no books in the library. The impressive tile work made a visit worth wile.

suppose I have a really good reason to return to Istanbul, not that I really needed one.

Luckily, at the time I didn’t know that such a precious treasure resided in the gallery, so I continued exploring with an open mind. I explored the lavishly decorated Imperial Counsel where meetings and matters of state were discussed among the grand vizier and all of the viziers and ministers. There was a window covered with a golden grill above the chamber that allowed the sultan to watch, or not watch, the proceedings without actually being a part of the meeting. I left the grand interior of the counsel and then I entered the main treasury. The treasury was where all of the salaries were paid to the janissaries and staff. Now it is home to an amazing display of Islamic arms. Inside there were fine examples of armor and weaponry ranging more than thirteen hundred years. There were weapons and armor from the Mamluks, the Abbasids, the Umayyad and the Persians, all either spoils of war or gifts to the Ottomans. The majority of the items on display were manufactured by the Ottoman Empire - It was certainly an impressive collection

The Conqueror's Pavilion

There is a bunch of treasure beneath those domes.

of the tools that formed their vast empire.

I left the arms collection and I headed over to a small kiosk where I purchased an additional ticket and then I entered the Imperial Harem. Everybody knows of the ‘Harem’ as it is portrayed by Hollywood: A repository of the most beautiful young women the empire has to offer set aside for the Sultan and the perpetuation of the empire. What Hollywood fails to portray is the fact that the harem was the sultan’s home. The sultan’s mother, his wives, his family and his children all called the harem home. Concubines and eunuchs also lived in the harem as servants and guards. I walked through the many small courtyards and halls that joined the different buildings of the harem together. Everywhere I looked columns and arches and domed ceilings melded together in graceful symmetry. There were rooms covered from the floor to the ceiling in intricately detailed tile work. There were amazing stained glass windows unlike any I have ever seen and picturesque courtyards with sweeping views across the Golden Horn. Everywhere I looked I saw images from the Arabian Nights in living detail.

I spent a long time

Oh, What a View!

This is the view the sultans would have had along the Bospherous, but the bridge in the distance is a new addition.

exploring the grandeurs of the harem and then I said farewell to the sultan’s inner sanctuary and I set off back through the different courtyards towards the Gate of Salutations, stopping several times to admire some of the details of the palace grounds. I joined a long line of people just outside of the Gate of Salutations where I purchased an ice cream and then I slowly strolled back down the shady lane towards the main gate. It had been a very informative journey back in time, but it was time to say farewell to Topkapi Palace.

I walked down the sidewalk, passing the Aya Sofya, and then I found my favorite sidewalk kebab stand where I devoured a quick, but delicious (and very late) lunch. A few minutes later I was standing beneath the huge arcades in the courtyard in front of the Blue Mosque staring up at the slender minaret nearest to me. I pulled my nice collared button up shirt out of my bag and I put it on over my t-shirt, doing my best to make myself look presentable, and then I followed the signs towards the entrance, stopping to read a sign regarding proper

Ottoman Architecture

Many of the lovely buildings had impressive tile work on both the inside and the outside.

etiquette while inside the mosque. I reached the Mosque’s entrance where I removed my sandals and put them in my bag and then I smiled at the man watching the entrance and said, “Merhaba”. He returned my greeting and ushered me inside with a broad smile. I had expected to feel the cold chill of the stone floor on my bare feet, but, instead, I felt the soft warmth of carpet - The entire floor of the mosque was covered in lovely blue, white and orange carpeting.

The exterior of the Sultan Ahmed Mosque is one of unrivaled beauty. Its six slender minarets reaching for the sky and its domes and half domes flowing down towards the ground in a cascade of stone and mortar and its placement across the park from the magnificent Aya Sofya all help make it one of the most magnificent structures I have ever seen. The mosque, which was built by Sultan Ahmed in 1616, is a functioning and important place of worship, but it is also one of the most popular tourist attractions in Istanbul. I have always known the mosque by its more commonly used nickname, The Blue Mosque, but, until I

The Fountain

This pool-like fountain was magnificently situated at the exit of the Imperial Harem.

stepped through the doorway and planted my feet on the warm carpet inside, I never knew how the huge gray building had gotten the nickname. It was immediately apparent - Every surface in the interior seemed to glow a deep blue! The blue radiated from countless blue and white tiles with floral motifs on them that seemed to cover every surface. In contrast to the Aya Sofya’s grand, multi-storied, colonnaded interior, the entire space beneath the huge domes of the Blue Mosque was open in one massive space. Its dome, which was a staggering forty-three meters above the floor, was supported by four massive, reverse-fluted columns. The four columns each had a lovely band of Islamic calligraphy wrapping around them about half way up and above the bands the flutes were decorated in rich blues and leafy greens - I have read descriptions of the interior in which the writers thought that the columns detracted from the interior’s beauty, but I thought they were magnificent.

I found a nice place between two of the columns near the wooden rail that delineated the tourist section from the worship section and I took a seat on the carpet facing the mirhab.

A Wall of Tile

This is one of the lovelier walls near the harem.

It was an amazingly peaceful place, so I sat there and contemplated the grand interior I was a part of. The light flowing in from the stained glass windows was accented by the soft light from the huge chandelier-like lattice work that was hanging just over my head. There were men praying in front of the mirhab, there were devout pilgrims excitedly snapping photos, there were children playing, paying no regard to the barriers, and there were huge numbers of tourists. Most of the tourists were dressed nicely and they respected the sanctity of the Muslim holy place, regardless of their own religious beliefs, but there were also the girls who, possibly in protest of the strict Islamic rules of modesty that only apply to the women, wore their most revealing short shorts and t-shirts and refused to wear the scarves that were provided to them at the entrance. I don’t personally agree with many of the rules, but I can’t think of a ruder and more culturally insensitive way to behave as a guest in someone’s house of worship. I must have sat there on my peaceful patch of carpet for more than half an hour before a friendly

The Imperial Counsel

The Imperial Counsel was one of the most exquisitely decorated rooms of the palace. All of the matters of state would have been discussed here.

guard came by and asked everyone to please leave. “It is time for our afternoon prayers” he said with a smile - I had been hoping that they would allow us to stay, but, I couldn’t blame them for not wanting a bunch of photo-taking tourists making noise and taking up floor space while they prayed. I slowly stood up and took one last glance around at all of the wonderful arches and domes and I noticed several ‘stalactite’ structures that I had missed the first time I looked around. I slowly made my way to the door and then I walked down the stone steps outside and I took a seat near the base of one of the minarets and there I waited. A few minutes later the hauntingly beautiful call to prayer, “Allahu Akbar, Allahu Akbar, Allahu Akbar, Allahu Akbar”, “Ash-hadu an la ilah ila Allah, Ash-hadu an la ilah ila Allah, ”, “Ash-hadu anna Mohammadan rasulullah, Ash-hadu anna Mohammadan rasulullah”, “Haya ‘alas-sala, Haya ‘alas-sala”, “Haya alal-falah, Haya alal-falah”, “Allahu Akbar, Allahu Akbar”, “La ilaha illallah”, slowly echoed in melodic harmony across the magnificent city of Istanbul…

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