The Impressive Archeological Museum of Istanbul

The group’s return to Istanbul meant a free afternoon for some of us disinterested enough in the TV station tour planned for the day.  Taking advantage of such free time, I chose to instead run along the southern coast and visit the archeological museum in Topkapi.  The former lasted about an hour (thirty minutes out-and-back) and showed a different side of the peninsula.

Opposed to the rolling terrain that we experienced the first couple days of touring (seven hills may be found on the peninsula), the southern coast was flat and without even the most nascent incline.  I passed by three points of notice.  First, a port larger than the one we embarked from to the north; second, a few parks where grade school teachers were taking advantage of the mid-Friday sun and, finally, an armada of cargo freights “parked” off of the southern coast awaiting clearance to pass north through the Bosphorus channel.

Numbering well over a hundred, the ships sat off the coast in the northern wind between distances of 200 and 800 meters.  Though the sizes of each ship didn’t vary, I assume that their cargo was a mix of everything valuable that could be found between Africa, Europe and the Americas.

Istanbul Archeological Museum

After a quick change, it was off to the archeological museum that was missed the Monday previous.  This museum had some hefty expectations to live up, and it did.  Housing artifacts such as sarcophagi excavated from the Levant, as well as the Kadesh Treaty (oldest political treaty in the world), the museum’s exhibits were chronologically ordered and very informative. 

I visited six of the eight sections, leaving out the top two floors of the main building dedicated to Syria and Jordan and Troy.  The other five were more than enough to satisfy my interests, covering ancient Middle East (Mesopotamia and Egypt mostly), tile work in Anatolia, sarcophagi from the Levant, pre-Byzantine Turkey, Istanbul through the ages and Thrace and Bythnia.  My only complaint would be that half my pictures didn’t survive a glitch upon download; however, most were of the panels rather than the artifacts themselves.

The first section visited was the pre-Islamic exhibit.  Here, two displays were of note.  First, part of the Ishtar Gate in Babylon exhibited numerous animals either found on the original or recreated from the 605-562 BC artifact.  As a Taurus myself, the most interesting were a couple of bulls.  The Kadesh Treaty was the second prominent piece.  Signed by the Egyptians in the Hittites around 1100 BC, this small artifact (about two feet by one foot) set the terms between the two civilizations and outlined such aspects as political prisoners.

A Bull from the Ishtar Gate

 The Treaty of Kadesh

The second exhibit visited was the sarcophagi from the Levant.  Pieces included the Lycian, Satrap, Alexander and “Weeping Women” tombs.  All of them hailed from the 4^th Century, but the best-preserved and most impressive was easily the Alexander Sarcophagus, which was so named because of the artwork on the tomb’s exterior and not for whom it may have encased.

From the Mural of the "Alexander" Sarcophagus.  Alexander is mounted, left

 One of the four faces from the "Weeping Women" Sarcophagus

Following this part of the museum, it was off to the pre-Byzantine section.  Covering from before the Persian period up until the Roman conquest turned to Byzantium, this winding hallway was dominated by Greek and Roman pieces inspired by Alexander and the Sea Gods.  However, it led into one of the more interesting sections that covered Byzantium’s eastern and western regions.

Poseidon

 The "Sea God"

Solely focused on Thrace and Bythnia, this section covered general and specific aspects of each with one area on the left side of the room and the other on the right.  These aspects included general history, life, religion, major cities and ceremonial practices.  Like most of the rest of the museum’s sections, descriptive histories of each area highlighted the prominent tribes, major resources and customs.  Though we studied each of these areas throughout both the Ottoman and Byzantine eras, I never felt that they played a dominant role in the region when compared to Istanbul.  After walking through this display, it felt as if each got a deserved representation.  I could not say the same for the next section.

A Sarcophagus recovered from Bythnia

Covering the period 330 to 1453, the Byzantine art section was hardly representative of the longest period on display.  Although this hall easily displayed the three major periods of Byzantine art, it felt that just as I was beginning to get a feel for one, the next was beginning.  I was disappointed by the lack of artifacts here.  Being interested in mosaics and busts of emperors, I was disappointed to only find one of each before the section came to an abrupt end.

Following it was the best section: Istanbul.  Again covering pre-Byzantine to early-Ottoman reigns, the placards here recounted most of the city’s historical monuments, even if no artifacts were present to do so.  Among them, one of the heads from the serpent monument in the Hippodrome was the most interesting.  Joining it was a section of the “Great Chain” that spanned the Golden Horn as well as coins from both Byzantine and Ottoman periods minted in the city.

A section of the "Great Chain"

Coins from the 13th Century Byzantium

 A portion of Porphyry from the 4th Century Tomb of Constantine the Great

 One of the three serpent heads from the Hippodrome Statue; the other two are out of Turkey

Finally, I stopped by the one section that felt most out-of-place: the Mosaic section.  Covering the three major tile-producing cities in Anatolia, the wing felt superfluous but was interesting nonetheless.   Beginning in the mid-19^th Century, Çanakkale enjoyed a period of ceramic production that helped ease the gradual decline of Iznik and produced much the same style and quality of goods. The other city, lost to the downloading mishap, produced earthenwares not in the traditional blue style.

One of the Iznik Tile sections displaying a Qur'anic verse; most probably once displayed in a Mosque at one time

Overall, the museum lived up to expectations and even exceeded some.  Most telling was that it was educational and complemented the course readings well.  Having taken over 220 pictures, more than 150 of them were from the panels describing the sites, artifacts and periods more than the artifacts themselves.  Well worth the twenty Turkish Lira for admission and audio guide!

Iznik: What Ifrane could be...

After two days in Bursa, a daytrip to Iznik rounded out the out-of-Istanbul portion of the trip’s first half.  Founded well before the Byzantine conquest, the small city was first known as Nicaea and – in our classroom – for two things: tile work and hosting the evicted Byzantines during the Latin occupation of Constantinople between 1204 and 1261.  Another important aspect of the city’s existence was that it hosted the first and seventh Ecumenical Councils.  The location for the latter was our first tour stop.

Haghia Sophia

Named for “The Holy Wisdom” like its Istanbul counterpart, this former cathedral was built in 1065 following an earthquake that destroyed the original.  Today, after much consternation, it acts as a heritage site and a mosque.  Though we were the only group to visit early in the morning, we were followed by a large group of Turkish grade schoolers that were more interested in it than the majority of our Moroccan classmates.  Much smaller than many of the sites we’ve visited up to this point, the Haghia Sophia was also the most ruinous. 

Gravel covers most of the indoor space, and a recent wooden roof straddles the historic walls; poly-glass cutouts float in most of the circular windows.  To me, this was one of the most disappointing sites because the disparity between its historical importance and remnants.  Both councils were huge events for Christianity; however, nothing relating to them remains or was mentioned at the site.  Instead, an unneeded mihrab faces toward Mecca atop a makeshift wooden floor.  Outside, a peaceful park surrounded three of the structure’s sides and created the most serine environment that I sat through in any of the three cities visited.

Constantine’s Gate

Our second site was the northern – and main – gate to the city.  Still predominantly surrounded by the three kilometers of the original walls, the city has at least four main entrances and many axillaries.  Constantine’s Gate was aptly named after the emperor whom first traveled through it when he entered the lakeside city.  Today, the wall’s are in ruins, but most of the gate still stands firmly.  Niches for statues on each side of the road and two carvings of what appear to be Medusa heads greet entrants to the city.

Roman Theater

The pre-Byzantine 2^nd-Century Roman Theater was the third stop on our tour; however, the locale built by Roman Emperor Trajanus was closed and a couple of photographs through the green fence were all that could be salvaged before going to lunch.

Haci Özbek Camii (Haji Ozbek Mosque)

Built in 1332, this small Seljuk mosque was the smallest visited through a week’s worth of traveling.  With no minaret and only one rectangular room hosting a light blue marble mihrab and wooden minbar, this mosque personified the simple nature of most mosques worldwide.

Eşrefzade Abdullah Rumi Mosque

The third mosque visited was dedicated to the son of Rumi, one of the first Sufi mystiques in Turkey.  The mosque described the son as, “educated by some of the best-known scholars of the period…His fame as a mystic spread far beyond the confines of Iznik, and he was also well-known as the founder of Esreffiye section, a branch of Kadiriye…He died around 1469-70.”  This was a plain square mosque unique in that its minaret was separated from the main structure.  Like most mosques, its arches were altenating orange and white stone in the Mamluk style.

Green Mosque Complex and Archeological Museum

 Below: The Archeological Museum and one of the tiles displayed within

The last Iznik site was also the most picturesque.  Though neither the museum nor the mosque hosted much impressive interior art, both provided good examples of tile work.  Further, the exterior of the green mosque gave one of the better external shots of any of the Bursa mosques.

Overall, the trip to Iznik was invaluable because it provided a sense of the dominant political and cultural histories that shaped the empires over the centuries.  Located only a short 90 minutes from Bursa, it was a trip that reminded me of what Ifrane could be rather than what it is: A small, picturesque tourist town with plenty to offer in a day.

Bursa and Ottoman Beginnings

Our third day of touring was light and started with a considerable trip from Istanbul to Bursa that included a couple shuttles via van and bus on opposite ends of a smooth ferry ride across the seascape.  Once in Bursa, the itinerary was short, only including trips to the Ulu Mosque, Orhan Mosque and Koza Han.  As each was next to each other (and close to the hotel), walking was light and the day short.

Bosphorus & Sea of Marmara
Below: The Bosphorus Bridge, connecting East and West

Below: The Old City, highlighted by Haghia Sophia and the Blue Mosque

Starting at the southern end of the Bosphorus and continuing southeast, we didn’t navigate the channel most of our 90-minute ferry ride from Istanbul to Bursa.  Moreover, looking north past its Bosphorus Bridge revealed little, as fog and a winding canal limited any views of the 30 km-long channel.  Still, I was reminded of that wretchedly funny scene in From Russia, with Love where Bond only wanted an innocuous place to collect information on an encrypting machine but found one that instead only helped charm the pants off of the interloper from whom he sought it.  The Sea of Marmara was calm and devoid of scenery, making most of the journey a pleasure to nap through.

Ulu Mosque (Grand Mosque)

 Below: The three-tiered fountain residing under the middle of twenty domes

Built between 1396 and 1399, this mosque housed a three-tiered ablution fountain underneath its grand central dome.  In stark contrast to the mosque's faded red carpeting, the interior’s eggshell-colored walls provided an appropriate canvas for its grand black calligraphy and silver linings.  My favorite was a tuğra of Selim II imprinted atop one of the exits.  A truly grand structure, this mosque is the biggest in the city and about ten times larger than the second-largest mosque we visited.

Orhan Gazi Mosque

 Below: The carpet pattern was the first of a theme of red throughout all mosques

Built in 1339, just 13 years after the Ottoman conquest of Bursa, this is the city’s oldest imperial mosque.  Situated no more than 300 meters from the Grand Mosque, this cathedral was commemorated after Orhan Gazi, son of Osman, and conqueror of Bursa.  Built in the Seljuk tradition and early Ottoman “T”-style, this mosque was quaint, its interior more white than the Ulu Mosque and its carpeting a richer red adorned with rows of mihrab imprints.

Koza Han (Silk Market)

The silk market was the first day’s last destination.  Built by Beyazit II in 1491, it has been central to the city’s silk trade since.  Today, a small mosque sits in the market’s central courtyard, surrounded by numerous shops selling the city’s most impressive product: silk.

At the end of a day spent traveling, the mountain town of Bursa offered little calm after sunset.  The neighboring Grand Mosque called for prayer late into the evening and early again the next morning; loud yet peaceful, the moazine’s melodic tone was more pleasant than Morocco’s, though I couldn’t say how or why.  The city’s sports fans provided more noise, as they celebrated a soccer victory with car horns ablaze late into the evening.  As a provincial capital and commercial center, Bursa is undoubtedly livelier than it was during the Ottoman occupation in 1326.

The second day in Bursa only lasted six hours but felt like twice that much given the number of sites visited and amount of pouty Moroccan faces in the crowd.  Regardless of the latter, the former were excellent and easily enjoyed.  Most enjoyable this day – aside from the cool weather – was that we visited the tombs of the first six Ottoman sultans, making it easier to remember them (inchallah) for the future.  I also found it interesting that despite the capital moving from Bursa to Edirne in the 1430s by Murat II, he chose to be buried here as well.

Tophane: Orhan I and Osman I Mausoleum (Sultan Orhan I and Sultan Osman I)
Below: Sultan Osman Gazi I, the "founding father" of the Ottoman Dynasty

Below: Sultan Osman Gazi I, son of Orhan and Conqueror of Bursa

Tophane is Bursa’s oldest district and appropriately home to the mausoleums of the first two Ottoman sultans.  Sitting next to each other, the mausoleums were built on a Byzantine church; in Orhan’s suite, remnants of the church’s Greek tiles remain.  Today, the visible tombs are from 1868, as an earthquake damaged the originals in 1855.  Three peculiarities can be found here.  First, Orhan’s tomb is bigger than his father’s, which I found interesting but appropriate as he conquered Bursa; however, his father was the dynasty’s patriarch and could justifiably have the large sarcophagus. 

Second, the garden work was exceptional, with bush’s trimmed to display the names of each sultan.  Third, a memorial to Bursa’s fallen during the Turkish war for independence following World War I stood in the memorial.  It is easy to suggest that the designers of this memorial picked this site to piggy-back on the founders of the Ottoman dynasty in order to create a magnitude of importance upon the war, however, this may not have been their intention at all.

Hüdavendigar Mosque Complex (Sultan Murat I)
Below: The Sultan's Tomb

The last stop of the day was to Sultan Murat’s mosque complex near the trouble-making puppet museum.  An unusual mosque as its medrasa is located above it, the Hüdavendigar is so named for the “Creator of the Universe,” Murat I, who was the third Ottoman sultan and died at the Battle of Kosovo in 1381.  


Containing his tomb, this mosque differed little with the complexes that preceded it.  Red carpet, white walls and gray trim surrounded a beautiful mihrab.  Murat’s tomb was cased in black with silver and gold railings underneath a pristine white turban capped with what appeared to be a green fesi.  Flanked again by his sons not named Beyazit I, this fitting mausoleum sat next to an equally impressive view of Bursa.

Yildirim Beyazit Mosque (Sultan Beyazit I)

Known as “Yildirim” after Beyazit’s moniker, “Thunderbolt,” this complex was built in 1389 as a mosque complex / Sufi lodge.  Like the Ulu Mosque, its interior held eggshell-colored walls with black and gold calligraphy and faded red carpentry.  Mounted atop the city, this mosque offered good views of the city beneath large çinar trees.  Beyazit, who met a fate worse than death following his defeat in Ankara to Tamerlane in 1402, was appropriately adorned with a beautiful black tomb, lined with forest green rails and flanked by two of his sons.  Though I sometimes scoff at how Tamerlane encaged him and essentially put him on display for eight months following his defeat, the fourth Ottoman sultan deserved better and has found it in Bursa.

Green Mosque & Tomb (Sultan Mehmet I)

Mehmet I commissioned Bursa’s most famous monument in 1412.  Built in the Tabrizi style from modern-day Iran, the tiling for the prayer hall of the Green Mosque was carried out by Ali Ibn Ilyas Ali, who studied in Samarkand.  It was the first time tiles were extensively used in an Ottoman mosque. 

Predominantly turquoise, both the mosque and tomb are the city’s most prominent landmarks and offer outstanding views of the city.  Aside from the tile use (particularly near the entrance), the most striking feature in the mosque was the mihrab, which was lit in an orange hue that contrasted greatly with the pale carpeting and bluish-gold framing.  Inside the mausoleum, the fifth Ottoman sultan's tomb was one of the most intricately-designed with blue tile and gold Qur’anic script.

Muradiye Mosque Complex (Sultan Murat II)

Murat II, the sixth Ottoman sultan and father of Mehmet the Conqueror, built this mosque complex in the early 15^th Century.  Today, it is home to the most buried Ottoman royalty anywhere in Turkey behind the Eyüp Sultan Mosque complex in Istanbul.  The number of mausoleums easily surpassed all other complexes in Bursa combined, and Murat’s dirt-filled tomb was the simplest of all sultans, displaying his strong Sufi tendencies.  

Dating between 1424 and 1426, the construction of the mosque left a standard “T”-shaped structure that now has red carpeting similar to the design pattern in Orhan’s mosque.  The mihrab is a cool tan and gray pattern that offers a subtle focal point between the green- and blue-trimmed white walls.

Emir Sultan Mosque

The second stop for the day was to the Emir Sultan Mosque, dedicated in the memory of Muhammed Şemseddin, who lived between 1368 and 1429, attained the position of Grand Vizier and married into the royal family.  Interesting here was not the structure (it was similar to all of the other complexes) but his tomb; it was much more extravagant then some of the sultans and on par with even Mehmet II’s mausoleum in Istanbul.  Though no more impressive than the others, the mosque’s white interior was unique – lined with gray trim, smaller calligraphy and lighter carpeting.

Bursa Museum of Turkish and Islamic Art
Below: A Flag-Head from one of the city's Sufi Orders

 Below: A set of Coins from the Ataturk Era, part of one of the more impressive coin displays dating from pre-Islamic times (500 AD) to 1923

Housed in a former medrasa, this museum housed exhibits between the 12^th and 20^th Centuries that included decorated Qur’ans, dervish robes and glassware.  My favorites were the coin and flag-head displays.  The former was a great display spanning pre-Islamic times to Ataturk; within each of the five display boxes, at least one coin represented every decade of the period, showing its dynasty, sultan, time period and location of manufacturing.  I’ve not seen a finer collection of coins for a region anywhere. 

The Second display showed the flag-heads of Sufi orders throughout Turkey.  Though the flag-heads were nice, their most interesting aspect was that they existed at all.  Up until Dr. Ross describing that each order had its own standard, I never gave it a thought, so it was definitely something learnt in the day.

Uluumay Jewelry Museum

An unexpected stop on the tour to the Uluumay museum, a privately-owned affair, offering an eclectic look at the jewelry and dress of the different cultures of the Balkans and Central Asia.  Found within a converted medrasa, the six display rooms were well-done, featuring motion sensors that automatically turned on the lights and began spinning each of its six-to-eight mannequins in order to see all sides of their attire.  The jewelry room smelled sweet but contained a mixed ensemble of artifacts that appeared neither elegant nor valuable (at least to my very non-appreciative eye).

Karagöz Museum

 Below: Some of the Shadow Puppet Characters

The second-to-last stop of the day was to the Karagoz Museum, a landmark dedicated to the shadow-puppet theater made popular by two mischievous 14^th-Century characters, Karagöz and Hacivat, who were executed for distracting their fellow workers while building the Orhan Gazi Mosque.  With at least two floors and two rooms apiece, this museum paid a hefty tribute to Turkey’s theater.  The two visited rooms displayed the different popular characters as well as some of the more famous puppeteers.  I still don’t know if shadow puppets are more of a Turkish or Bursa tradition, but the stop added a unique spirit to the city almost akin to Brussels’ comic character.

Mevlevi Lodge

The last official event in Bursa was a visit to the recently opened Mevlevi lodge for a recitation by the revived brotherhood.  Including a description of Sufism as well as a brief history of the lodge and a dance recital from five of the brothers ranging in age from about ten years to forty years old, the trip was a good change of pace from the day's mosques and tombs.  As my butt fell asleep from sitting on the thinly-carpeted hardwood floor, I was impressed not only with the dervishes' ability to continuously spin, but to do so with such grace.

Water and Walls

After starting the day on an audible due to a couple unforeseen closures, Day 2 turned busy quickly.  Hosting a mix of Byzantine and Ottoman sites, eight hours of group touring brought us to Byzantium's center, its largest cistern, back to its famed hippodrome and to the city's ancient exterior, where we visited the Kariye cathedral, Theodosius' massive land walls and Valen's aqueduct.  Regarding Ottoman sites, our trip included the Sultanahmet Mosque, Edirne Mosque and Fetih Mehmet Mosque. In between, we visited the Grand Bazaar, and I found time to sneak in a trip to the hammam.

Milion (not the major Ottoman buttress, but the small gray slab in the lower left corner)

Placed at the center of the city at the Hippodrome, the stone "Milion" was once part of a triumphal arch and used as the starting point for all of the empire's cities, particularly the mile markers around Istanbul.

The Basilica Cistern 

 

The largest of two preserved cisterns, this structure dates from the Justinian era (527-565) and takes its present name from a basilica that was built over it.  At 140 meters long and 70 meters wide, the cistern was once used to store up to 100,000 tons of water for the city's citizens.  336 columns raise from the shallow water to a height of 9 meters to support the structure, and most of them have capitals that reflect Corinthian style.  The most popular are two columns in the northwest corner that have Medusa heads engraved on them; many legends have attempted to explain their origins as well as the fact that both are lying on the ground upside down and on its side, respectively.  Most likely, little supervision or care was provided during that part of the installation (who would see the base of a reservoir anyway?).  More intriguing was that I did not share the secret entrance to the spy mechanism into the Russian Embassy as Bond had in From Russia with Love.

Hippodrome
The Egyptian Obelisk

 The Base of the Obelisk, displaying four scenes of the Emperor at the Circus

The only remains of the city's circus are the three columns that used to stand in its center: the Column of Constantine Porphyrogenitus (10th Century AD), Serpentine Column (479 BC) and Egyptian Obelisk (1500 BC).  Our second time here, I was more taken by Constantine's column because the Janissaries used to scale it as a test of manhood.  It reminded me of training for the Best Ranger Competition a few years ago...

Sultanahmet Mosque

In the lower left corner is the mihrab and minbar; the lights hanging above head are at 10'

As we entered the grandest mosque of the city, I remembered a previous conversation with Dr Ross mentioning that the "Blue" Mosque lacked substance despite its beauty.  Agreed.  Although the 17th Century mosque was grand, detailed, ornate and any other positive adjective you could bestow upon it, the site lacked something to define it.  Unlike the Haghia Sophia which had numerous artifacts / interesting details built into each level, the Sultanahmet Mosque was just...big and boring.  Further, the floral designs up and down the walls were gorgeous but almost too much.

As I mentioned to Dr Rupert after the trip, I preferred the interior design of the Hassan II Mosque in Casablanca because I remember the different levels having different ornamentation made of different materials; though the rest of the mosque lacked engineering prowess, the design was well done.

Grand Bazaar

 The Oldest Coffee Shop in the Bazaar (now a jewelry boutique), circa 1750

Established by Mehmet II after he took the city in 1453, the bazaar has thousands of shops trying to take money (and give Dr Rupert's hair a feel!).  Much like Fez or Marrakech, the bazaar was more modern, nicer and less congested; however, like them, I could do without a return trip within its walls...

Çemberlitaş Hammam

For 69 Turkish Lira ($40), I enjoyed a traditional Turkish bath in one of the city's most famous hammams, built by Sinan himself in 1673.  The experience started by entering the hammam sauna.  Round in shape, the sauna room was covered entirely by a tan, condensated dome filled with 150 fist-sized holes spiraling toward its center to provide light.  From the dome's center hung a single unlit lightbulb from a plied electrical cord.  A marble slab filled the room three feet above ground level, with walrus-sized hairy patrons beached upon it like the sea lions along the Monterey coast.  Like chapels to a cathedral, individual open bath stalls surrounded the circular room.

The marble was hot, creating a fidgety first-time experience while I waited for a couple other patrons to finish their rub-down.  Soon enough, it was my turn and I was beckoned by a hairy 50-something in pidgin English to move to his corner of the marble slat and, "lie."  Back and front, seated and lying down, the gruff man proceeded to peel off layers of dead skin, proudly grunting at his progress in a manner implying I should've done this months ago.

After a thorough soaping and a few buckets of hot water, he shucked my arms and legs like corn cobs, apparently trying to take muscle from the bone.  In between meaty claws, I heard the gruff reminders to "No tip upstairs; you give money me."  So, after an equally rough shampooing and just as subtle reminder to place Turkish Lira only in his hands, I was done with my 45-minute hammam experience, rejuvenated and ready for a bit of traveling outside the inner old city.  Would I do it again?  Of course.  Was it as rough as implied?  No, but it wasn't gentle either.

Kariye Cathedral

The Southern Dome, Virgin with Angels

The Anastasis

Mosaic of St Peter

Also known as the Church of the Savior in Chora, the Kariye Museum is home to some of the best Byzantine mosaics in the city; unfortunately, I left my map of them at the hotel and was disinterested in most of them.  Built in the 11th Century, the museum appears not to have undergone any massive renovations or reconstructions, as most of the interior and exterior showed the effects of time, particularly the barren nave.  Instead of spending a prolonged time indoors, I started reading James Barr's Setting the Desert on Fire on a cool shaded pavilion.

Walls of Theodosius 

The walls have been around since the 300s, and the portion of them we visited was along the road to Edirne.  Passing through the Edirne Gate, I tried to imagine what it was like for an Emperor to head out to Thrace for battle or Mehmet II entering through it for the first time in 1453.  Both visions were futile, as traffic whizzed by on the wall's exterior highway and bus drivers cracked wise while parked along the wall's interior.  The old schematics held true, at least regarding the main wall and its moat.

Edirne Mosque

Probably the nicest mosque interior visited thus far (of three), this recently renovated work of Sinan's was spacious and bright, but not weighted down by the ungainly site of thousands of black cords from which chandeliers were hung (like Sultanahmet).  The red floor offered a stark contrast to the pale white walls encrusted with lime green and opaque trimmings.

Fetih Mehmet Mosque

Turbe of Sultan Mehmet II (The Conqueror)

The crown jewel of the day comes from an unplanned site, the Fetih Mehmet Mosque.  Originally the Church of the Holy Apostles, I stumbled around this mosque not knowing its original identity or that Mehmet the Conqueror (for which it was renamed) was buried there.  Built as the original resting place of Byzantium's Emperors, this mosque also was to consolidate the remains of Jesus' twelve apostles.  Along with the Byzantine Emperors' resting places being unmarked, the original mosque is also no longer due to an earthquake in 1766.

We didn't enter the mosque, only its courtyard.  But, the gem for any visit has to be outside the complex in the form of Mehmet II's turbe (tomb).  Stepping inside the small mausoleum was special, as the conqueror's tomb was three times as long as needed and adorned by the Sultan's turbin, encased in a very appropriate black cover behind glass.  The gravitas described in Eyewitness Travel is appropriate; the only other tomb I've visited on this par was Napoleon's porphyry-covered resting place.  Adding to the experience was how he was remembered...

Mehmed the conqueror was tall, full-faced,

well-muscled and strong with a ruddy complexion and a ram-like nose...