Istanbul Trip, April 2007 - Topkapı Sarayı (Topkapi Palace Museum) Part 1

Topkapı Sarayı, which means "Cannongate Palace" in English, was named after a nearby gate which has a cannon mounted on top of it.

The palace, which were built on the ruins of ancient Roman city, was the main residence of all the Ottoman Sultans until it was abandoned in the 19th Century. It was also the administrative center of the Ottoman Empire from 1465 to 1853.

In comparison to palaces of other culture, this palace serves many more functions. The palace was: the place where the council of ministers met, and the treasury, mint, and state archives were located there. The highest educational institution of the empire, the university of the sultan and the state was also here.

Unfortunately, only certain sections are open to the public. There are two main reasons for this.

(1) The palace itself is HUGE!. It has a total area of around 70,000 square metres, which is twice the size of the Vatican and half the size of Monaco.

(2) The palace was abandoned in the 19th Century when the then Sultan Abdulmecid decided to build a extraordinary lavish palace on the banks of the Bosphorus River. Neglected thereafter, many rooms of the Topkapi Palace fell into disrepair. There are restoration work going on all around the palace, there are simply too much to repair.

The palace used to be a very busy place. Around 5,000 members of the Dynasty, dignitaries, ruling class, maidservants and soldiers lived here. In addition to that, the palace used to receive approximately 5,000 visitors everyday. As a result, the palace had to employed about 1,200 people in the kitchen just to accommodate all these people. The kitchen is located on one side of the second courtyard. Everyday, 20,000 meals were prepared in the kitchens. (3 meals for the 5,000 occupants and a single meal for 5,000 visitors each day)

Look at the chimneys of the kitchens!

Part of the old kitchen has been converted to a museum for one of the world's largest collection of porcelain. These porcelain was especially valued by the sultans because it was supposed to change colour if the food or drink it holds was poisoned. Before of frequent (and actual) use, you can actually see that some of the porcelain are chipped/cracked. I guess it's better than being use as a display piece in the other European royal houses.There was also a silverware and crystal ware collection which was also very impressive! The details on these objects are simply amazing.

The second courtyard was opened to foreigners and general visitors. The garden is still filled with very old cypress trees. When garden used to be tended by hundreds of people and they also maintained lots of exotic animals, e.g. peacocks, gazelles, to display the wealth and the span of Ottoman empire.

The Babussaded or Akaghalar Door between the 2nd and 3rd courtyard. This is where the enthroning ceremonies and celebration of new conquests used to take place.

Over the Bab-üs Saadet or Akaghalar Door, there are some examples of the fine calligraphy.

The ground in front of the door is marked by a stone which shows where exactly the enthroning used to take place.

Through this door, we arrived at the third courtyard. The first building was the Arz Odasi (Audience Chamber), where the Sultan received the reports from Council Meetings and foreign guests. The room itself was decorated with 16th Century Iznik Tiles. The Sultan would sat on his golden and emerald decorated throne whereas all the visitors sat on the floor. The room was decorated with precious stones and gold curtains were hanged over the windows. Unfortunately, the curtains went to the mint to be melted down for the sikkes coinage during hard times.

There is a little fountain on the right of the door to 'create' noise during the meetings so that nobody could have heard what the subject of the meeting was. The people serving in the room were also selected from among deaf and mute persons.

A photo of the Arz Odasi (Audience Chamber).

The infamous Ambassadors Treasury is also located in this courtyard. The Ambassadors Treasury contains the riches of the empire. Over the 400 years, the sultans of the Ottoman empire had amassed a great quantity of wealth, supplied through spoils of war, gifts from neighboring kings and queens, and the odd impulse buy.

The building behind me was the Abassador Treasury section.

Some of the more amusing items:
(source: http://www.frommers.com/destinations/istanbul/0350020332.html)

1. the various ceremonial thrones, including one in pure gold-plated over walnut tree, weighing in at 550 pounds; an ebony throne; and a jewel-encrusted throne; and a jewel-studded mother-of-pearl and tortoise-shell throne, which demonstrated high level of inlay and setting workmanship of the masters.
2. a holy relic -- a piece of St. John the Baptist's skull and a section of his forearm, enclosed within a solid gold model.
3. a pair of shoulder-high candlesticks crafted of solid gold and caked with 6,666 diamonds and weighing over 105 pounds each. It was made for the tomb of Prophet Muhammad
4. the famous Topkapi Dagger, with a row of HUGE emeralds and diamonds in the hilt and on the cover.
5. 86-caret Spoon Maker's Diamond, or Kasikdi Diamond, the fifth largest diamond in the world glittering in a setting of 49 smaller (still big) diamonds. The centre diamond is believed to be the same diamond that was owned by Napoleon's mother.
6. a golden cradle for newborn sons (sons only)

Sadly, photos were not allowed inside the treasury. If you are interested in seeing some of the objects in the treasury, here is a good link:
http://www.ee.bilkent.edu.tr/~history/topkapi3.html

Then, there was the Hırka-i Saadet Dairesi (Holy Relic Section), which contains relics of Prophet Muhammad. Inside, there is a booth in which an imam (religious guide) has been reciting passages from the Koran 24/7 continuously for the past 500 years. The room contains:

1. The golden cloth that once covered the black stone in the central courtyard of the Kaa'ba in Mecca (a new one is richly prepared each year.)
2. Display cases showing the Prophet's relics: his hair, a tooth, his footprints, and even soil from his grave.
3. The Holy Mantle, the most sacred item in the collection, contained in a gold coffer and sequestered behind a grilled door.
4. Swords of Prophet David, Muhammad and his companions.
5. What is believed to be the oldest existing Koran, written on deer skin.

Again, no photos allowed. But you can see the items here:
http://www.ee.bilkent.edu.tr/~history/religious.html

Onto areas that we have photos for:

A fountain in the centre of several beautiful pavilions.

Inside the Revan Kosku (Revan Pavilion). It was built by Sultan Murat IV in 1636 to commemorate the capture of Revan. There windows decorated in mother-of-pearl and tortoise shell are very beautiful.

External tiles of the Sünnet Odası (Circumcision Room), which dates back to 16th Century.

Inside the room. With more tiles!

Tulips are planted all around Istanbul. There were literally hundreds of tulip along the pathway to the main entrance! It was a very pretty sight!

For more information:
http://www.topkapisarayi.gov.tr/

Museum hours are 9:00 am - 5:00 pm.
Topkapi Palace is closed on Tuesdays.
Entrance fees: 10YTL