| Sultanahmed (Istanbul) | |
.jpg/250px-Golden_Horn_(2099141773).jpg) | |
| State | Turkey |
|---|---|
| Region | Marmara region |
| Territory | Eastern Thrace |
Sultanahmet is a district of the city of Istanbul.
To know
How to orient yourself
Sultanahmed: full screen map.Neighborhoods
- Binbirdirek
- Cankurtaran
- Küçük Ayasofya
- Sultan Ahmed
How to get
How to get around
What see
Little Hagia Sophia Mosque
- 1 Little Hagia Sophia Mosque (Küçük Ayasofya Camii), Küçük Ayasofya mahallesi, Küçük Ayasofya caddesi (400 m south of the Blue Mosque, near the Kennedy Caddesi waterfront, bus stop: Çatladı Kapı Durağı). The church erected in 527 AD, the first year of Justinian I's reign and dedicated to Saints Sergius and Bacchus, was converted into a mosque (between 1506 and 1513), by Hüseyin Ağa, the leader of the Agha (black Eunuchs) at the end of the reign by Bayezid II. The temple has lost the mosaics that covered its interior. The internal structure resembles that of Santa Sofia on a smaller scale.
Facade of the Istanbul Archaeological Museum
- 2 Istanbul Archaeological Museums (İstanbul Arkeoloji Müzesi), Osman Hamdi Bey Yokuşu, Gülhane (Tram T1: Gülhane; take the first right after entering Gülhane Park), ☎ 90 212 520-7742, @[email protected].
36 TL (Dec 2019). 
Tue-Sun 9 am-8pm, and until 6pm in winter. A museum of vast proportions with collections ranging from the third millennium BC to the nineteenth century AD. A must see! One of the best museums, including a large collection of Sumerian tablets, pieces of the Babylonian wall, and Roman marble statues. It contains some very famous pieces of ancient art, such as the Sarcophagus of Alexander, once believed to be the sarcophagus of Alexander the Great himself (but later it was discovered that it was not), very well preserved and decorated with bas-reliefs of Alexander the Great; one of the missing heads of the Pillar of the Serpent; a twin head of the Medusae inside the Basilica Cistern; and several imperial sarcophagi in red porphyry in the courtyard. - 3 Bostani Ali Mosque (Bostani Ali Câmi Şerifi), Küçük Ayasofya mahallesi, Kadırga Limanı caddesi 110. Mosque, of Muslim faith.
- 4 Church of Santa Irene (Aya İrini).
- 5 Sokullu Şehit Mehmed Pasha Mosque (Sokullu Şehit Mehmed Paşa Câmii), Küçük Ayasofya mahallesi, Şehit Mehmetpaşa Yokuşu, ☎ 90 212 5246410. Mosque, of Muslim faith.
36 TL (Dec 2019). 
Tue-Sun 9 am-8pm, and until 6pm in winter. A museum of vast proportions with collections ranging from the third millennium BC to the nineteenth century AD. A must see! One of the best museums, including a large collection of Sumerian tablets, pieces of the Babylonian wall, and Roman marble statues. It contains some very famous pieces of ancient art, such as the Sarcophagus of Alexander, once believed to be the sarcophagus of Alexander the Great himself (but later it was discovered that it was not), very well preserved and decorated with bas-reliefs of Alexander the Great; one of the missing heads of the Pillar of the Serpent; a twin head of the Medusae inside the Basilica Cistern; and several imperial sarcophagi in red porphyry in the courtyard.
Hagia Sophia
- 6 Hagia Sophia (Ayasofya Müzesi, Ayasofya or Hagia Sophia), ☎ 90 212 5221750, 90 212 5220989, fax: 90 212 5125474, @[email protected]. 40 YTL. 09: 00-17: 00, in summer open until 19:00. Built as a basilica and dedicated to the Sophia (i.e. the wisdom of God), on the site of two earlier churches, it was later converted into a mosque in the Ottoman period and secularized and converted into a museum in 1935.
- 7 Gülhane Park literally "Park of the house of roses", Gülhane Parkı in Turkish.
- 8 Park of the Sultan AhmedSultanahmed Parkı in Turkish.
Ayasofia
Inner narthex and imperial gate
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The church of Aghia Sofia, today transformed into a museum
Ayasofia plant
- [link not working]Ayasofya Müzesi, Sultahmet Square (On the north side of the square at Yerebatan Caddesi). Aya Sofia is the greatest example of Byzantine architecture. Today the basilica, dedicated to Divine Wisdom (from the Greek Agia = Sacred and Sofia = Wisdom) is a museum. The current church dates back to the time of Emperor Justinian I and was built in February 532 on the site of another destroyed the previous month in a fire that broke out during an attempt to overthrow the emperor fomented by the Azzurri faction and went down in history as Nika's revolt. You enter the basilica from the imperial door, once reserved only for the Byzantine emperor and his entourage and preceded by a double narcete. The mosaic above the portal depicts the emperor Leo VI of Byzantium prostrate at the feet of Christ. What strikes once you cross the entrance are the vast proportions of the temple, a rectangle measuring 71 x 77 surmounted by a bold dome with a diameter of about 30 m and 55 m high from the ground. The apse is occupied by a mihrab placed in the direction of Mecca and to the right of this is the minbar from the time of Sultan Murad III (1574-1595). The galleries on the upper floor, accessible from the ground floor via a staircase, are decorated with mosaics believed to be masterpieces of Byzantine art. Near the marble door is the one called Deesi (Maiestas Domini, Majesty of the Lord) depicting Christ between the Virgin Mary and John the Baptist. Two other mosaics in the south galleries are the one that portrays the Virgin with child between the emperor Giovanni II Commeno and the empress Irene and the other with Christ between the emperor Constantine Monomachos and the empress Zoe. the mosaic depicting the emperor Alexander III, discovered in 1958, is hidden in a dark niche that is not easy to identify.
Tombs in the Mausoleum of Mehmet III, Mausoleum of Selim II, Mausoleum of Murat III
Roxelana baths
- Haseki Hürrem Sultan Hamami (Roxelana baths), Ayasofia Meydani.
Blue Mosque
External
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- 9 Sultan Ahmet Camii (Blue Mosque) (Opposite Ayasofia on the vast Sultanahmet square). Built between 1609 and 1616, the blue mosque was commissioned by Sultan Ahmed I to a design by the court architect Sedefkar Mehmet Ağa, a student of Sinan. The mosque boasts six minarets and is preceded by an arcaded courtyard of the same size. At the center of the portico is the small fountain of ablutions (Şadırvan) of hexagonal shape and with exclusively ornamental function. The nickname "blue mosque" derives from the predominant color of the tiles that decorate the interior. The tiles were hand made by craftsmen from Iznik. They depict floral motifs but also fruits and trees. The windows that filter the sunlight also contribute to making the atmosphere of the interior evocative. The central dome has 28 while each of the lateral half domes has 14. The interior is illuminated by modern chandeliers that have replaced the ancient candelabra covered in gold leaf and adorned with precious stones. The marble mihrab is finely carved as is the nearby minbar from where the imam delivers his sermons. The verses of the Koran that adorn the four corners of the central dome were performed by Seyyid Kasim Gubari, a leading exponent of Islamic calligraphy who lived between the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries.
At Meydanı
Obelisk of Theodosius
- 10 At Meydanı (Hippodrome). Built on the model of the Circus Maximus of Rome by Septimius Severus and enlarged by Constantine. Today very little remains of this stadium which could accommodate 100,000 people. Among the works that have come down to our days we note:
- The Egyptian obelisk transported by Constantine is mutilated. At its base there is a bas-relief that reproduces the emperor Theodosius.
- The serpentine column, also severely mutilated, was brought there from Delphi.
- The Column of Constantine Porphyrogenitus - Named after the Byzantine emperor who had it restored in the 10th century AD.
- 11 Obelisk of Theodosius. Brought to you by Constantine from Egypt. At its base there is a bas-relief that reproduces the emperor Theodosius.
- 12 Serpentine column. It was also severely mutilated and brought there from Delphi.
- Column of Constantine Porphyrogenitus. From the name of the Byzantine emperor who had it restored in the 10th century AD.
- Fountain of Emperor William.
- Büyük Saray Mozaikleri Müzesi (Museum of the Mosaics of the Grand Palace), Hacımimi Mh., Lüleciler Arastası Sk (Near the Blue Mosque), ☎ 90 212 518 1205. Housed in part of the ruins of the Grand Palace which served as the residence of the Byzantine emperors from 330 to 1081, the museum houses mosaic floors from an unidentified building in the complex. The floors date back to the time of Justinian and were discovered during excavations carried out in 1952. The themes are typical of late Roman art, rural scenes and representations of fantastic animals.
Museum of Turkish and Islamic Art
- Türk ve İslam Eserleri Müzes (Museum of Turkish and Islamic Art), Süleymaniye Mh. İstanbul Ünv. No: 46. The museum is housed in the 1524 palace which was the residence of Ibrahim Pascià, grand vizier of Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent. The exhibits are more than 40,000 and many of them date back to the pre-Ottoman period. The ground floor houses a section dedicated to ethnography with the reconstruction of yurts and utensils of the nomadic populations of the Ottoman Empire. The collections are arranged in chronological order and by geographical area. The carpets are much admired
Interior of the mosque
Sokollu Mehmet Pasha Mosque
- 13 Sokollu Mehmed Paşa Camii (Sokollu Mehmet Pasha Mosque), Şehit Çeşmesi Sokak 20-22. The mosque was designed by the famous architect Sinan and was commissioned by Sokollu Mehmet Pasha, grand vizier and husband of a niece of Suleiman the Magnificent. It stands on a modest hill but with steep slopes from which the steps leading to a portico where once the cells of the students of the medressa were located. The interior is distinguished by the use of Iznik tiles which, together with the inlaid windows, help to create a suggestive atmosphere.
Ruins of the Byzantine palace
- 14 Bukoleon Saray (Bukoleon Palace) (Near Little Hagia Sophia). Of the ancient residence of the Byzantine emperors only a few vestiges remain where the homeless people of Istanbul find refuge.
Filoxeno cistern
- 15 Binbirdirek Sarnici (Cistern of 1001 columns or Filoxeno cistern), İmran Öktem Caddesi. Built in the 4th century BC. and therefore prior to the Basilica of the Cistern under a palace identified as "Palazzo di Antiochio, a eunuch of Persian origins who enjoyed the favor of Emperor Theodosius II. The cistern could contain up to 40,000 m³. Its vaults are supported by 224 columns of marble, 15 meters high.
Topkapi Palace Museum
Topkapi complex
Audience chamber
16 [link not working]Topkapi Palace Museum (Topkapı Sarayı Müzesi), Cankurtaran, Fatih (Any bus or tram with a sign or indication for which it goes to Topkapı will not lead near Topkapı Palace. Rather, he will go to a neighborhood named after the homonymous city gate ("cannon gate"), which may be worth it for the impressive city walls. The Topkapi district is located in the far western part of the old city, while the Topkapı Palace is located in the far eastern part, which means that the distance between them is at least 7–8 km. "Topkapı" by itself almost always refers to the neighborhood, not the building. For the palace, the stop / station you should look for is 'Sultanahmet'), ☎ 90212512-0480. 60 TL, Harem 35 TL extra (only credit cards and Turkish currency accepted). A separate ticket is paid for the harem spaces. Wed-Mon 09: 00-17: 00 (winter), 9: 00-19: 00 (summer). The ticket offices close one hour earlier. This palace is a monumental complex that was the residence of the Ottoman sultans. It is located in a strategic position on the low promontory where the waters of the Golden Horn and the Sea of Marmara meet. It was the imperial enclave of the Ottoman emperors for four centuries. It contains exhibits of fine workmanship. Sumptuously decorated, with four courts of increasing size. In the second court of the entrance to the Harem (extra entrance) and to the State Treasury, which houses an exhibition of weapons. In the third court is the Imperial Treasury. There are also Islamic and Christian relics, carpets and porcelain. The views from the Fourth Court over the Bosphorus are spectacular. You can also see the personal effects of the Prophet Muhammad.
- The main entrance is at the Imperial gate (Bâb-ı Hümâyûn / Saltanat Kapısı) The ticket offices have audio guides in Italian which will allow you to save time. All the monuments in the complex are marked with numbers. Just type the code indicated on the table on the audio guide to hear the description.
1st courtyard or court of the Janissaries
The first courtyard once known as the Janissaries' courtyard is now a park and once served as a precinct. Here, in fact, dignitaries of the palace and Janissaries met visitors and diplomats at the Sublime Porta who had an audience with the sultan. There is the Byzantine church Aghia Irini which was used as an armory in the Ottoman era. The imperial mint was saved from the buildings that overlooked the first court.
Church of Santa Irene
- Aya İrini Kilisesi (Church of Santa Irene).
The middle door or door of greeting
- Orta Kapi. Orta Kapi, that is, the Porta di Mezzo is a crenellated door between two polygonal towers with a conical roof. Also known as the door of salute, it gives access to the second court where once the sessions of the sultan's council were held and therefore called Divan Meydanı (council square
2nd court or council square
Once through the Porta di Mezzo, you enter the second courtyard of the building.
Topkapi. The kitchens of the building
- Kitchens. On the eastern side of the council square overlook the spaces once used as kitchens and servants' quarters, undoubtedly one of the most interesting places in the complex due to the collections of Chinese porcelain and silverware services.
Topkapi: The door to happiness
- Bab-üs Saadet (Bring happiness).
3rd court
- Arz Odas (Audience Hall).
What to do
Shopping
- 1 Arasta bazari (Arasta market), Sultan Ahmet mahallesi, Arasta Çarsısı sokak. The market is purely tourist, with souvenirs of all kinds.
How to have fun
Where to eat
Average prices
- 1 Meşhur Dönerci Sedef büfe, Binbirdirek mahallesi, Divanyolu caddesi 21 A, ☎ 90 212 5162420, fax: 90 212 5172098, @[email protected]. Kebabberia.
Where stay
Moderate prices
- 1 Stone hotel İstanbul, Binbirdirek mahallesi, Şehit Mehmetpaşa Yokuşu sokak 34, ☎ 90 212 6381554, fax: 90 212 5176330, @[email protected]. Hotel.
- 2 Alp Guest House, Cankurtaran mahallesi, Adliye sokağı 4, ☎ 90 212 5177067, fax: 90 212 5179570. The family-run pension has 14 rooms.
- 3 Bahaus Pansiyon (فندق باهاوس), Cankurtaran mahallesi, Bayram Fırını sokağı 11-13, ☎ 90 212 6386534, fax: 90 212 5176697. The rooms are less than 10 € but breakfast is separately. Pension. The staff here are personable. With bar and terrace. Ability to use Internet stations for free (with system and connection working, but old version of the operating system).
- 4 Mavi guesthouse (Mavi Pansiyon), Cankurtaran mahallesi, Kutlügün sokak 3, ☎ 90 212 5177287, fax: 90 212 5165878, @[email protected]. Pension with polite staff and breakfast is included in the price of the room, which is negligible. Free wireless Internet connection. Television in the room.
- 5 [link not working]Orient hostel, Cankurtaran mahallesi, Akbiyik caddesi 9, ☎ 90 212 5179493, fax: 90 212 5183894, @[email protected]. The hostel *** has 14 rooms. The bar is located upstairs and the dining and bar area (for quieter evenings) is on the roof (with a view of the Blue Mosque, the Golden Horn and partial of Istanbul's Asian side). The rooms are cheap but the same cannot be said of the tour agency on the ground floor. Two or three times a week there is a belly dancing show followed by mostly older men trying to compete for the attention of the dancers.
- 6 Sideotel, Cankurtaran mahallesi, Utangaç sokak 20, ☎ 90 212 4585870, 90 212 5172282, fax: 90 212 5176590, @[email protected]. Family run hotel. Breakfast is served on the panoramic terrace.
- Deniz Houses hotel (Deniz Konak otel), Küçük Ayasofya mahallesi, Çayıroğlu sokak 14, ☎ 90 212 5189595.
- Serenity Hotel İstanbul, Küçük Ayasofya mahallesi, Kasap Osman sokak 29, ☎ 90 212 6382802, fax: 90 212 6382804, @[email protected]. Hotel
- Blue Tuana hotel (former Big Orange hotel), Sultan Ahmed mahallesi, Değirmeni sokak 3, ☎ 90 212 5181061, fax: 90 212 5181062, @[email protected].
Average prices
- 7 Garden House otel, Küçük Ayasofya mahallesi, Mehmet Paşa sokak 11/13, ☎ 90 212 5179111, fax: 90 212 5180151. starting from 40 EUR. The **** hotel has 24 elegant style rooms, in an Ottoman villa from the 19th century.
- 8 Sarnıç otel (formerly Sarnıç premier hotel), Küçük Ayasofya mahallesi, Küçük Ayasofya caddesi 26, ☎ 90 212 5182323, fax: 90 212 5181062, @[email protected]. starting from 48 EUR; Credit cards accepted. Check in: 24 hours. The **** hotel has 21 bright rooms with wooden floors, traditional Turkish furnishings and air conditioners. Breakfast included, linen included, luggage storage, free wireless internet connection.
- 9 Serenity Hotel Istanbul, Küçük Ayasofya mahallesi, Kasap Osman sokak 27, ☎ 90 212 6382802, 90 212 6382803, fax: 90 212 6382804, @[email protected]. from 40 EUR for single and, 60 EUR for double. The hotel *** has 14 rooms. Breakfast and all taxes included in the price. The rooms have air conditioning, television, free wireless internet connection. Laundry on request.
- 10 Sokullu Paşa otel, Küçük Ayasofya mahallesi, Şehit Mehmet Paşa sokak 3, ☎ 90 212 5181790, 90 212 5181791, fax: 90 212 5181793, @[email protected]. starting from 40 EUR. The **** hotel has 24 elegant style rooms, in an Ottoman villa from the 19th century.
- Blue House Hotel (Mavi Ev), Cankurtaran mahallesi, Dalbasti sokak 14 (located next to the Blue Mosque), ☎ 90 212 6389010, fax: 90 6389017, @[email protected]. Hotel opened in July 1997.
- 11 Empress Zoe, Cankurtaran mahallesi, Adliye sokak 10, ☎ 90 212 5182504, fax: 90 212 5185699. Prices starting from € 50 for the rooms and € 100 for the suites (breakfast included). A nice hotel in a quiet street with basic but not without elegance rooms in the traditional Turkish style. From the terrace there are wonderful views over the city.
High prices
- 12 Ibrahim Paşa otel, Binbirdirek mahallesi, Terzihane sokak 5. from 125 EUR for a double room including a full Turkish breakfast. Another nice little hotel. The rooms have all the comforts.
- 13 Sultan Han otel, Binbirdirek mahallesi, Piyer Loti caddesi 7, ☎ 90 212 5163232 (Pbx), fax: 90 212 5165995, @[email protected]. The elegant hotel has 40 rooms, decorated in traditional Ottoman style. Satellite television and free wireless Internet access, in a five-story building with two lifts.
How to keep in touch
Other projects
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