Legend or Truth? Follow Istanbul’s Mythic Traces

1. 01
   History

   Weigh the Secret Beneath Çemberlitaş

   Constantine consecrated his new capital in AD 330 with this column. Legend says relics were placed beneath its base, from Mary Magdalene’s alabaster jar to the baskets of the miracle of the loaves and even the Palladion brought from Troy. None were ever found, and the city’s oldest mystery still waits under a pedestal.

   Çemberlitaş Sütunu, Istanbul, Turkey
2. 02
   History

   Search for the Lost Heads of the Serpent Column

   Cast in bronze to commemorate the Greek victory over the Persians at Plataea in 479 BC, this column was first erected at Delphi and carried the names of the 31 Greek cities that fought there, once supporting a golden tripod. Constantine brought it here around 324, and Ottoman sources later treated it as a talisman against snakes.

   Serpent Column, Sultanahmet Square, Istanbul, Turkey
3. 03
   Exploration

   Find the Empire’s Zero Point

   All Byzantine road distances were measured from this monument, Istanbul’s counterpart to Rome’s golden milestone. It was erected in the 3rd century under Septimius Severus, renewed in Constantine’s era, disappeared in the early 16th century, and was rediscovered in excavations in 1967–68.

   Milion Stone, Fatih, Istanbul, Turkey
4. 04
   History

   Find the Upside-Down Medusa in the Basilica Cistern

   Built by Justinian in the 6th century, this cistern contains 336 columns, each about nine meters high, arranged in twelve rows of twenty-eight. Many were reused from older structures. In the northwest corner, two Medusa heads sit as bases, one sideways and one upside down, and no one knows for certain why.

   Basilica Cistern, Istanbul, Turkey
5. 05
   Culture

   Come Face to Face with the Lost Serpent Head

   One of the serpent heads from the column you examined at the Hippodrome is displayed here, missing its lower jaw. The museum’s main building opened on 13 June 1891, and its founder was Osman Hamdi Bey, appointed director in 1881. Now return to the day’s first question: talisman or victory monument?

   Istanbul Archaeological Museums, Istanbul, Turkey
6. 06
   History

   Stand at Hezarfen’s Takeoff Point

   According to Evliya Çelebi, Hezarfen Ahmed Çelebi leapt from this tower in the 17th century with eagle-like wings, crossed the Bosphorus, and landed in Üsküdar while Murad IV watched from Sarayburnu. The only source is the Seyahatname, and the TDV Encyclopedia of Islam considers a three-kilometer wing-powered flight impossible.

   Galata Tower, Istanbul, Turkey
7. 07
   History

   Test the Mihrimah Legend

   As soon as you step off the ferry, Sinan’s 1548 mosque greets you. Popular lore says Sinan expressed his love for Mihrimah Sultan through two mosques: on 21 March, the moon would rise behind this one while the sun set behind the other in Edirnekapı. There is no documentary proof for the story, and even Mihrimah’s birth date is unknown.

   Mihrimah Sultan Mosque, Üsküdar, Istanbul, Turkey
8. 08
   Exploration

   Look Back from Hezarfen’s Landing Ground

   In Evliya Çelebi’s account, Hezarfen touched down at Doğancılar Square. The TDV Encyclopedia of Islam gives the landing distance as about 3,200 meters and does not consider such a flight possible by arm power alone. Decide for yourself: could that distance really be crossed in a single glide?

   Doğancılar Parkı, Üsküdar, Istanbul, Turkey
9. 09
   Photography

   End the Day at the Maiden’s Tower Viewpoint

   Legend says a ruler’s daughter, fated to die from a snakebite, was shut away in this tower, only for the snake to arrive hidden inside a fruit basket. The tower’s second name, Leander’s Tower, comes from the story of Hero and Leander. Remember yesterday’s talisman: in this city, the snake is always a messenger of fate.

   Salacak Sahili opposite Maiden's Tower, Üsküdar, Istanbul, Turkey

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