The Nişan Taşı of Istanbul
Kaushik Patowary
Jun 11, 2024
Scattered throughout the old neighborhoods of Istanbul, particularly in an area known as Okmeydanı , are several stone steles erected in the...
Showing posts with the label Turkey
The Battle of The Eclipse
Anonymous
Mar 25, 2022
Picture this: two raging kings have been at war for five years now. Lives have been lost, battles have been fought, and in the current momen...
Treaty of Kadesh: The World’s First Peace Treaty
Kaushik Patowary
Mar 10, 2022
On the walls of the Temple of Karnak near Luxor, Egypt, and on the temple of Pharaoh Ramesses II in Thebes, are engravings that describe a g...
The Hayirsizada Dog Massacre
Kaushik Patowary
Nov 24, 2021
Istanbul has many fascinating sights, from grand mosques to bustling bazaars, but one thing that has most consistently captured the imaginat...
Istanbul’s Cast Iron Church
Kaushik Patowary
Apr 23, 2021
Although it looks like stone, the Bulgarian St. Stephen Church with its richly ornamented façade on the shores of the Golden Horn in Istanbu...
The Vespasianus Titus Tunnel
Kaushik Patowary
Oct 19, 2020
Around 300 BC Seleucus I founded, on the current southeast coast of Turkey, the city of Seleucia Pieria. Located north of the mouth of the O...
The Turkish Hotel Built Above an Ancient Ruin
Kaushik Patowary
Apr 25, 2020
In 2009, a construction crew digging the foundation for a new hotel in Antakya, Turkey, made an astonishing discovery. They uncovered a va...
Bridges With Buildings—Part 2
Kaushik Patowary
Nov 5, 2019
During the Middle Ages, it was common to have buildings built on top of bridges. These spaces were rented out to shopkeepers and merchants, ...
The Ottoman Sultans Who Were Raised in Cages
Kaushik Patowary
Sep 25, 2019
Topkapi Palace from across the Bosporus, Istanbul. Photo credit: Faraways/Shutterstock.com Situated in the heart of Istanbul and visible f...
Letters Q, W, And X Were Once Illegal in Turkey
Kaushik Patowary
Aug 28, 2019
An alternative spelling for taxi in Istanbul, Turkey. Photo credit: Jürgen Luger/Flickr In 1928, the Turkish government decided to change ...
Prinkipo Orphanage: Europe’s Largest Wooden Building
Kaushik Patowary
Apr 18, 2019
This rickety wooden building, practically on the verge of collapse, is the largest wooden building in Europe and the second largest in the ...
The Arsonist Who Set Fire to an Ancient Wonder of The World So That People Would Remember Him
Kaushik Patowary
Mar 9, 2019
On the night of July 21, 356 BCE, two important events took place in the Mediterranean Basin. One created history, the other erased it. On ...
The Decorative Birdhouses of Turkey
Kaushik Patowary
Aug 1, 2017
Turkish societies value animals greatly, especially birds which they believe bring good luck. The Turk's great love for the feathered sp...
Hattusa: The Ancient Capital of The Hittites
Kaushik Patowary
Jun 29, 2017
One of Turkey’s lesser visited but historically significant attraction is the ruin of an ancient city known as Hattusa, located near modern ...
Nasreddin Hodja of Turkey
Kaushik Patowary
May 4, 2017
You may have not heard of Nasreddin Hodja, but in the Middle East, Central Asia, and parts of Europe, Nasreddin Hodja is a famous folk chara...
The Sunken City on Kekova Island
Kaushik Patowary
Nov 19, 2016
The ancient Lycian city of Simena, often referred to as Kekova-Simena, once straddled the long and narrow island of Kekova in the Mediterran...
The Mysterious Cart Tracks of Phrygia Valley
Kaushik Patowary
Oct 28, 2016
In the Phrygian Valley of Turkey, in the west central part of Anatolia, are numerous so called “cart tracks” that crisscross across the land...
Istanbul’s Famous ‘Meme Cat’ Honored With Statue
Kaushik Patowary
Oct 7, 2016
On the occasion of World Animal Day on October 4, Istanbul unveiled a sculpture in the likeness of Tombili, a cat that shot into fame early ...
Kayakoy: A Greek Ghost Town in Turkey
Kaushik Patowary
Sep 16, 2016
Eight km to the south of Fethiye city in southwestern Turkey lies the ruins of around five hundred houses belonging to the once thriving com...
The Ruined Churches of Ani
Kaushik Patowary
May 20, 2016
Up on a plateau in the remote highlands of northeast Turkey, 45 km away from the Turkish border city of Kars, lies the crumbling ruins of so...
