Istanbul Guide

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WOMEN OF THE HAREM

empire. Only the sultan and his mother, the valide sultan, were allowed through the Middle Gate on horseback. Everyone else, including the grand vi zier, had to dismount. Scale models just inside the gate give a good sense of the palace’s layout and sheer size. Like the First Court, the Second Court has an attractive park-like setting. Unlike typical Europe an palaces, which feature one large building with outlying gardens, Topkap ı is a series of pavilions, kitchens, barracks, audience chambers, kiosks and sleeping quarters built around a central enclosure. The great Palace Kitchens on the right (east) as you enter have finally reopened following years of restoration. The ornate contents of the palace cupboards are on display, ranging from poreclain perfume bottles to a gold-plated copper jug owned by Tiryâl, one of Mahmut II’s many consorts. Also here is a small portion of Topkap ı ’s vast collection of Chinese celadon porcelain, valued by the sultans for its beauty but also because it was reputed to change colour if touched by poisoned food. On the left (west) side of the Second Court is the ornate Imperial Council Chamber (Dîvân- ı Hümâyûn). The council met here to discuss mat ters of state, and the sultan sometimes eaves dropped through the gold grille high in the wall. The room to the right showcases clocks from the palace collection. North of the Imperial Council Chamber is the Outer Treasury , where an impressive collection of Ottoman and European arms and armour is dis played, including a 14th-century Hungarian sword fit for a giant. Harem The entrance to the Harem is beneath the Tower of Justice on the western side of the Second Court. If you decide to visit – and we highly recommend that you do – you’ll need to buy a dedicated ticket. The visitor route through the Harem changes when rooms are closed for restoration or stabilisation, so some of the areas mentioned here may not be open during your visit. As popular belief would have it, the Harem was a place where the sultan could engage in debauchery at will. In more prosaic reality, these were the im perial family quarters, and every detail of Harem life was governed by tradition, obligation and cere mony. The word ‘harem’ literally means ‘forbidden’ or ‘private’. The sultans supported as many as 300 concu bines in the Harem, although numbers were usually lower than this. Upon entering the Harem, the girls

Islam forbade enslav ing Muslims, so the concubines in Topkap ı ’s Harem were foreign ers or infidels. Girls were bought as slaves or were received as gifts from nobles and potentates. Many of the girls were from Eastern Europe and all were noted for their beauty. The most famous was Haseki Hürrem (Joyous One), more commonly known as Roxelana, who was the consort of Süleyman the Magnifi cent. The daughter of a Ruthenian (Ukrainian) Orthodox priest, she was captured by Crime an Tatars, who brought her to Constantinople to be sold in the slave market. SULTANAHMET & AROUND TOPKAPI PALACE

The chief black eunuch, the sultan’s personal representa tive in administration of the Harem and other important affairs of state, was the third most powerful official in the empire, after the grand vizier and the supreme Islamic judge.