English
Topkapi Palace is located between the Sea of Marmara and the Golden Horn, offering an incredible view of the Bosphorus, the straight that on one hand links the Sea of Marmara with the Black Sea and on the other it separates Asia and Europe.
It was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1985.
The palace complex is made up by four main patios and small adjacent buildings. In its time of splendor, it held over 4000 people and it covered a vast area on the shore. The complex extended itself with time. The biggest renovations took place at the beginning of the 16th century, after the earthquake that shook the city and then, again, in the 17th century after a fire.
The palace is managed by the Turkish Culture and Tourism Ministry and it´s guarded by officials of the Turkish army. It has hundreds of rooms and chambers where we find the bearers of Ottoman architecture with wide collections of porcelain, costumes, arms, shields, armors, Islamic manuscripts, miniatures, murals and the maximum exponents of Ottoman jewels and treasures.
The palace´s structure is pretty complex, with small buildings constructed around the interconnected patios through galleries and walkways. Generally, the buildings are just of one floor. In-between them, there are wonderful sacred trees, gardens and fountains. This way, they transmit a relaxing atmosphere to the palace inhabitants by having the doors and windows looking towards the patios, which also brought fresh air in the hard and hot Istanbul summers.
The palace is a vast rectangle, divided in four patios and a harem. The first patio was the most accessible one while the fourth one was the most hidden one together with the harem, which were the most inaccessible parts of the palace due to being private domain of the sultan.
The total extension of the palace covers 173 acres.
At the entrance we find the imperial gate which is where we access the palace from. At the first patio we find the welcoming gate, in the second there´s the ceremonial patio, the stables and a collection of arms, as well as the white eunuch gate. In the fourth patio there are various pavilions and kiosks, a mosque and a porch.
At the palace walls, there are various pavilions and external gates that aren´t used by the public anymore.
The treasure is absolutely spectacular. Its origin goes back to gifts from other leaders, inheritances or war chests. It´s exhibited in four different rooms. In one of them we find the Topkapi Dagger, the most expensive in the world, elaborated with diamonds, gold and emeralds. We can also find an incredible diamond that is the third biggest in the world.
The palace security has come under scrutiny recently when on the 30th of November of 2011, a Libyan ex-policeman tried to perpetrate a massacre against the tourists who visited the palace but was finally brought down by the police.
Istanbul is full of treasures. You need many days to enjoy its jewels and many of those who fell in love with the city have decided to stay and live there. If you visit it, don´t miss out on visiting this palace that is open from 9am to 5pm and rent apartments in Istanbul
Translated by: aleixgwilliam
