Monumentos romanos de Estambul Basic istanbul roman memories

Basic Istanbul - Roman Memories

Roman Memories
Istanbul retains no major evidence of its very ancient past when it was called Byzantium: we
know that the acropolis was located on the hill at the tip of the peninsula,
on the site of Topkapi Sarayi, the residence of the Sultans.
In 193 AD Byzantium sided with Pescennius Niger, Roman governor of Syria, against
Emperor Septimius Severus, who besieged the town: it was a long siege and when eventually
the town fell it was razed to the ground. A few years later the emperor rebuilt it and gave it a
new name Augusta Antonina , because Septimius
Severus claimed to be the legitimate successor of Emperor Antoninus Pius. The new town was
larger than the previous one and it rapidly grew again, owing to its excellent position on the
trade routes between Europe and Asia and between the Mediterranean and the Black Seas.

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All images © by Roberto
Piperno, owner of the
domain. Write to
romapip@quipo.it. Text
edited by Rosamie
Moore.
(left to right) Column
of the Goths; details
of this column (above)
and of the following
one (below); Column
of Marcian; Column
of Arcadius

During the IIIrd century for the first time the Roman limes (fortified border) on
the Danube River was crossed by nomadic tribes and the Goths laid siege to Byzantium. A


column was erected to celebrate the decisive victory of Emperor Claudius II (268-270) against
the Goths at Naissus (today's Nis in Serbia). In 272 Constantius Chlorus, the military commander
of Naissus had a child by an innkeeper's daughter: he was to become Emperor Constantine and
to play a major role in the future of Byzantium (some believe the column celebrated
Constantine's victories).
The Column of Marcian was erected during the reign of that emperor (450-57) to celebrate not
so much a victory on the battlefield, but his ability in preserving the city from being attacked by
the Huns. This column is known in Turkish as the
Kiztasi (Maiden's) Column
because, according to a legend, the column would identify false virgins from true ones. This
is probably due to the existence in the same neighbourhood of a (lost) column to Venus (it
makes more sense to believe that a goddess, rather than an emperor, had means to detect loss
of innocence).
A third column was erected by Emperor Arcadius (395-408) to celebrate his triumphs: it was
similar to Trajan's Column: it did not celebrate a victory on the battlefield, but riots during which
the Goths who lived in Constantinople were massacred. Only parts of its base remain.



(left) Cemberlitas
(Column of
Constantine);
(centre) heads of
Medusa; (right)
Yerebatan Sarayi
(Basilica Cistern)

In 324 Byzantium was again caught in the middle of a fight between two contenders for the
Roman Empire; they were co-emperors and brothers-in-law, yet Constantine and Licinius did
not refrain from involving large armies and fleets in a bloody civil war. Constantine won a
great victory at Adrianople and Licinius retreated to Byzantium which he had to withdraw from
when Crispus, Constantine's eldest son defeated his superior fleet. This time Byzantium did not pay
a price for having been on the wrong side of the fight, because in 326 Constantine decided to
move the capital of the Roman Empire there. Byzantium was renamed


Nova Roma , but because Constantine had almost entirely rebuilt it, over
time Constantinopolis (Constantinople) became the most
used name.
Cemberlitas (the burnt column) is a column erected by Constantine at the centre of his Forum
(now near the Great Bazaar). It celebrated the inauguration of the new capital of the empire
which occurred on May 11, 330. The column was made of ten blocks linked by bronze rings:
it supported a statue of the emperor. Storms and fires have greatly damaged the column and only
six blocks are left.
Constantine built a cistern to supply water to the imperial palaces. It was enlarged by
Emperor Justinian (527-565). The cistern was built in the form of a subterranean basilica with
336 columns, for this reason it is called Yerebatan Sarayi (Undergound Palace). It was during
the changes made by Justinian that two colossal heads of Medusa were employed as bases
for columns. They most likely came from a temple to Apollo and they were placed in that position
as an indication of the despite for the old faith.

(left) Walls supporting
the Hippodrome; (centre-



1) Obelisk of
Emperor Constantine
VII; (centre-2)
Serpent Column;
(right) Milion

The Hippodrome played a special role in the early days of Constantinople. Chariot races were
very popular and crowds gathered there, so often riots started in the hippodrome.
Constantine greatly enlarged a previous circus and to do this he had to level the ground between
two hills by erecting huge supporting walls. The hippodrome was decorated with statues and
other monuments. The Serpent Column was brought here from
the sanctuary of Apollo in Delphi. The column celebrated the victory of the Greeks against
the Persians and it ended with three heads of snakes supporting a golden basin. But both
Christians and Muslims did not like snakes (seen as a symbol of evil) and eventually the
bronze snakes were decapitated (one head has been found and can be seen in the
Istanbul Archaeological Museum).
A rather unrefined obelisk stands near the Serpent Column; it is known by the name of
Emperor Constantine VII Porphyrogenitus (913-59), because of an inscription at the base of
the obelisk, but it is thought he just restored the crumbling monument which most likely was
erected by Constantine.
In 20 BC Emperor Augustus erected a column in Foro Romano; it was
called Miliarium Aureum because it served as the starting
point for measuring the length of the roads leading to the main towns of the empire (it is now
lost). In Constantinople this function was assigned to an arch (Milion ) which
was located at the northern end of the Hippodrome; recent excavations have brought to light a
long stone which is thought to have been part of that arch.



Aqueduct of Valens
at Ataturk Bulvari

An extensive net of aqueducts provided the city with that ample supply that the Roman way of
living required for baths, lavatories and fountains. Because the city was built on seven
hills, aqueducts had to pass over many gaps; that between the third and the fourth hill is of a
major dimension and it required the construction of many arches.
This aqueduct was completed in 368 by Emperor Valens to supply the imperial palaces. Damaged
by earthquakes and storms it was always repaired. The lower arcade is made of large stones,
whilst the upper one is made of lighter materials.



Sections of the
aqueduct near
Kalenderhane Camii

It is interesting to follow the aqueduct in its eastern section where it carried water to a Roman
bath which was turned into a church and later on into a mosque (Kalenderhane Camii).



(left to right) Obelisk
of Thutmosis III; details
of its hieroglyphics;
relief portraying
Emperor Theodosius offering
a laurel wreath

According to an account it was Constantine who brought this obelisk of the Pharaoh Thutmosis III
to Constantinople, but it was Emperor Theodosius I (379-95) who actually placed it at the centre
of the Hippodrome. According to another account the decision to relocate the obelisk was made
by Emperor Constantius II at the same time he shipped to Rome the Lateran Obelisk. For
some reasons while the transport and erection of this obelisk went smoothly, the obelisk
for Constantinople was broken and it was not erected (it is small because it is just the upper part
of the original obelisk). Finally a third theory suggests that everything was done by Theodosius;
this is in contrast with inscriptions in Latin and Greek which were placed at the base of the obelisk
to celebrate the event: they emphasize the erection and not the transportation: strangely enough
the Latin inscription says the erection required 30 days, while the Greek one says thirty-two.
The hieroglyphs are very fine, in contrast with the rather still reliefs of the base. The lower part of
the relief shown above portrays musicians and spectators and two water organs.


Obelisk of Thutmosis
III: (above) chariot
race; (below) submission
of the Goths

One of the reliefs portrays some Goths on their knees and offering gifts. As a matter of fact it
was Theodosius who made gifts to the Goths. He was appointed co-emperor after the defeat
of Valens at the Battle of Adrianople in 378. His policy was to find an appeasement with the
Goths who eventually were allowed to settle in various regions of the Balkans and to
govern themselves. In 394 he did not hesitate to attack Eugenius and Arbogastes,
respectively emperor and actual ruler of the western part of the empire, with an army
mainly composed of Visigoths. He defeated his rivals at the Battle of the Frigidus (today Vipava
River in Slovenia): he became the sole ruler of the empire, but he also paved the way for the
410 invasion of Italy by the Visigoths.
The threat of the Goths led to the construction of new walls to protect Constantinople (408-413).



Forum of Theodosius:
(left) discovery of a
podium in 1950;
(right) today with
the addition of
other remains

The most touristic street of modern Istanbul (inside the walls of the ancient city) follows the
same route as Mese (middle) Road, the main artery of Roman Constantinople. In 1950,
during excavations made to enlarge the street, remains of a small podium were found near
Beyazit Medresesi. Other findings in the area included pieces of columns and fragments of
a triumphal arch; they now have been assembled in a rather haphazard way along the pavement
of the street.



The Hippodrome in a
Russian engraving based on
a painting by
Gavriil Sergeef (late
XVIIIth century)
(by courtesy of
Andrey Spashchanskiy)

The image used as background for this page shows a relief of the obelisk portraying
Emperor Theodosius and his court.

Introduction to this section
Hagia Sophia
Byzantine Heritage (before 1204)


St. Saviour in Chora
Byzantine Heritage (after 1204)
First Ottoman Buildings
The Golden Century: I - from Sultan Selim to Sinan's Early Works
The Golden Century: II - The Age of Suleyman
The Golden Century: III - Suleymaniye Kulliye
The Golden Century: IV - Sinan's Last Works
The Heirs of Sinan
Towards the Tulip Era
Baroque Istanbul
The End of the Ottoman Empire
Topkapi Sarayi
The Princes' Islands
Map of Istanbul

Other sections dealing with Constantinople/Istanbul:
The Walls of Nova Roma
Galata


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