Basketmakers' Kiosk

The Basketmakers' Kiosk ( _tr. Sepetçiler Köşkü), also known as "Sepetçiler Palace" ("Sepetçiler Kasrı"), is a former Ottoman pleasure palace located on the southern shore of Golden Horn's mouth at Sarayburnu in the neighborhood of Sirkeci in Istanbul, Turkey. [ [http://studentweb.med.harvard.edu/SS125/html/weddingvenue.html Student web] ] Built in 1592 by Sultan Murad III and renovated by Sultan Mahmud I in 1739, [ [http://www.allaboutturkey.com/ist_pal.htm All about Turkey] ] it is the only surviving building from a row of many assorted pavilions and palaces constructed within the outer yard of Topkapı Palace. [ [http://213.243.16.209/article.php?enewsid=74907 "Turkish Daily News" June 4, 2007] ]

Served initially as the government's Foreign Press Office and International Press Center following its renovation, [ [http://www.turkeytravelplanner.com/galeri/istanbul/photopages/004.html Turkey Travel Planner] ] the prominent place with its indoor and open-air facilities for meetings and banquets is managed recently by Swissôtel.

The imperial structure, a former part of the Topkapı Palace complex, is situated on top of the ancient Golden Horn Wall at Marmaroporta ("Marble Gate") ( _tr. Yalıköşkü Kapısı) just below Topkapı Palace. It was erected next to, yet no more existing, Yalı Köşkü, a waterfront pavilion, which was built by Selim I and served to many sultans as a place for reception of Kaptan Pashas (fleet admirals) [ [http://www.tarihportali.net/tarih/index.php?topic=2615.0;wap2 History Portal] tr] and for salutation of the fleet before setting sail to a campaign or after returning from a campaign. [ [http://www.atasatforum.com/v6/archive/index.php?t-17531.html Atasat Forum] tr]

The palace on four floors with thick stone-built walls has spacious halls with high wooden doors. It has a panoramic view to the Galata Bridge, the Galata Tower, Karaköy and the Bosporus. The building was turned into a warehouse after alterations made in the 19th century. During the Republic era, it was used as an army pharmacy and then left empty until its restoration in the late 1980s. [ [http://www.allaboutturkey.com/ist_pal.htm All about Turkey] ] Renovation work, carried out with reference to old pictures, enabled the restoration of the building to its original state.

The Basketmakers' Kiosk incorporates today a recommended restaurant named "Hammam" ( _en. Turkish bath), which transforms into a nightclub in the late hours. The site hosts also musical events like jazz concerts during the annual Istanbul International Jazz Festival. [ [http://www.turkishdailynews.com.tr/article.php?enewsid=47664 "Turkish Daily News" July 2, 2006] ] [ [http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?t=218109 Skyscraper City] ]

See also

* Ottoman architecture

References

Literature

* Fanny Davis. "Palace of Topkapi in Istanbul". 1970. ASIN B000NP64Z2
*cite book | title=Architecture, ceremonial, and power: The Topkapi Palace in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries| last=Necipoğlu| first=Gülru| date=1991| pages= 336 pages| publisher=The MIT Press| location=Cambridge, Massachusetts| id=ISBN 0-262-14050-0

External links