The Monkey poses for a risky photo above the raceway known as Atatürk Boulevard, but the real attraction of this shot (aside from the Monkey) is the 4th Century Aqueduct of Valens, which facilitated the delivery of fresh water from far outside the city to the cisterns and fountains in the center straight through the 19th Century!

At the site of the Byzantine Hippodrome that once hosted chariot races, the Monkey admired the Egyptian Obelisk that dates from the 15th Century BCE or even earlier (the obelisk broke in transit from Egypt during the 4th Century, and only the top third of it remains). In the background are two of the six minarets of the Blue Mosque.

The Monkey pays a visit to the grounds of the Ecunemical Patriarchate of Constantinople. The Patriarchate has been at this location since 1601, but moved twice before then and actually dates from around 330. The Patriarch (a high bishop) of Constantinople was second only to the Bishop of Rome (better known as the Pope) in the church hierarchy. After the 1054 schism, the Patriarch at Constantinople became the chief religious figure for the Eastern Orthodox confession, though he was subjugated by the Byzantine Emperors and his control over his followers was never comparable to that of the Papacy in the West.

Under the Ottoman millet (akin to a religious "caste") system, while Islam was the most revered religion and Muslims were the best treated citizens, other religions were not illegal and religious freedom was generally respected. The Sultans recognized the Constantinople Patriarch as the leader of the Christian millet, and Christians, though subject to Ottoman taxation and military control, followed the laws established by the Patriarchate.

Despite the powers it held under the millet system during the Ottoman period, the Constantinople Patriarchate's control was steadily diminished—not so much by the Turks but moreso by the Russian Tsars, who in 1589 established a Patriarchate in the Third Rome (Moscow), which usurped much control from Constantinople. This diminuation continued later with the establishment of other new Orthodox Patriarchates and Exarchates (in Bulgaria, Serbia, and elsewhere) that sought to preach in the more vernacular Old Church Slavonic rather than Greek, consequently playing a key role in the nationalist movements that eventually brought down the Ottoman Empire. Thus, today the Patriarchate in Istanbul is one of many Patriarchates and governs a smaller flock, but remains proud of its centuries-old legacy as the core of Christian Orthodoxy.

Despite the fact that invaders hauled off vast amounts of Byzantine relics, Constantinople was also capable of cannibalizing itself. Here, in the 4th Century Yerebatan Saray, a Byzantine cistern that supplied the imperial palace with water from a forest outside the city, the Monkey encountered a carved Medusa head being used as the base of a support column. The cistern was also the site of one of the Monkey's worst pictures, which you can see here if you scroll to number one.

Home——Region Selector——Special Features——Monkey FAQ——Contact——Links

Copyright monkeytravel.org 2002-2005. The Monkey respects your right to use his photos for your personal, non-profit entertainment or for educational purposes.