Turkiye 2023: Exploring Sultanahmet
The first full day in Istanbul and our friend S had packed the day with things to see and do. Thankfully, all or most of them are in the Sultanahmet area - we can just walk from hotel to one site to the next. Side note, our friend S was the one that built our itinerary for the Alberta road trip so we know that we will make the most of our time in Istanbul.
Item #1 on today's list was a visit to the Blue Mosque. However, this day was a Friday and right there we found out that both Blue Mosque and neighboring Hagia Sophia do not open to public until 2:30 pm on Fridays.
As we were walking along and revamping the sequence of sites we get to see, we happen upon a mausoleum that was open for public. We thought it was worth looking into.
This turned out to be Sultan Ahmed Tomb, which is located near the Blue Mosque (aka Sultan Ahmed Mosque) just next to the Hippodrome Square (another item on our list today.) Sultan Ahmed was a sultan of the Ottoman Empire from 1603 to 1617. The tomb was designed by Sedefkâr Mehmed Aga, a leading architect of his time, also designed the Blue Mosque.
You can see the minarets of the Blue Mosque in the background.
One must leave the shoes outside and put head covering, which we knew beforehand so we brought our own scarves. Inside is what I can call a symphony of colors and tilework. I read that these were Iznik tiles. Iznik is a town in Northwestern Turkiye that was the main center for production of tiles and tableware during the Ottoman Empire.
What I wasn't prepared for was the presence of sarcophagi (36 as I read later on) covered in velvety material all crowding the main floor. I read online that there is a second level to the mausoleum, but I didn't see any stairs, or any access to it. We remained on the main floor following the walkway that went around the main floor.
At the time of the visit, I did not know anything about this building, which was why I was unable to photograph the sarcophagus of Sultan Ahmed, or take better pictures of the other sarcophagi.
[Travel time: Sept 20 - Oct 4, 2023]
You can see the minarets of the Blue Mosque in the background.
One must leave the shoes outside and put head covering, which we knew beforehand so we brought our own scarves. Inside is what I can call a symphony of colors and tilework. I read that these were Iznik tiles. Iznik is a town in Northwestern Turkiye that was the main center for production of tiles and tableware during the Ottoman Empire.
What I wasn't prepared for was the presence of sarcophagi (36 as I read later on) covered in velvety material all crowding the main floor. I read online that there is a second level to the mausoleum, but I didn't see any stairs, or any access to it. We remained on the main floor following the walkway that went around the main floor.
At the time of the visit, I did not know anything about this building, which was why I was unable to photograph the sarcophagus of Sultan Ahmed, or take better pictures of the other sarcophagi.
[Travel time: Sept 20 - Oct 4, 2023]
Another country you were so lucky to visit when you did! Beautiful !
ReplyDeleteThe mosaic work is beautifully intricate.
ReplyDeleteI've always loved the mosaic tiles and artworks from Turkiye. Such vibrant colors.
ReplyDelete