Basilica Cistern (Yerebatan Sarnıcı)
The Basilica Cistern in Istanbul is a 9,800-square-meter underground Byzantine reservoir built in 532 AD by Emperor Justinian I, supported by 336 marble columns. Constructed by 7,000 slaves to supply the Great Palace of Constantinople, the structure was forgotten after 1453 until French scholar Petrus Gyllius rediscovered it around 1545. Its northwest corner uniquely features two carved Roman Medusa heads repurposed as column bases.
Istanbul · from the walk “Sultans, Spices & Hidden Streets” · audio ~3 min · Generated
Yerebatan Sarnıcı, Alemdar Cd. No:13, Sultanahmet, Fatih, İstanbul
- Byzantine Emperor Justinian I built the Basilica Cistern in 532 AD using 7,000 slaves.
- The Basilica Cistern covers 9,800 square meters and contains 336 marble columns arranged in 12 rows.
- French scholar Petrus Gyllius rediscovered the Basilica Cistern around 1545 after learning locals pulled water from basement holes.
- Two large Roman Medusa heads serve as inverted column bases in the northwest corner of the Basilica Cistern.
Why are the Medusa heads in Istanbul's Basilica Cistern positioned upside down and sideways?
Right now, you are standing above one of the most extraordinary hidden worlds in all of Istanbul. Beneath your feet... beneath the traffic, the cafes, the everyday bustle of Sultahnahmet... lies a sunken palace.......... The Basilica Cistern. In Turkish, Yerebatan Sarniji... the Sunken Cistern. Built in five thirty-two AD by Byzantine Emperor Justinian the First, this colossal underground reservoir was designed to store water for the Great Palace of Constantinople. Historical texts say that seven Thousand slaves labored to complete it. The result? A subterranean cathedral of water... nine thousand eight hundred square meters wide, held up by three hundred and thirty-six marble columns arranged in twelve perfect rows.......... But here is what most people never hear. For centuries... this place was completely Forgotten. After the Ottoman conquest in fourteen fifty-three, the new rulers preferred fresh running water from aqueducts. The cistern fell silent. Then, around fifteen forty-five, a French scholar named Petrus Gyllius came to Istanbul searching for Byzantine ruins. And what did the locals tell him? That they could lower buckets through holes in their basement floors... and pull up fresh water. Some even swore they caught Fish down there. Intrigued, Gyllius descended through a basement, climbed into a small boat, and rowed between the columns by torchlight... fish swimming beneath him in the darkness.......... Now, the stars of this place... the two enormous Medusa heads at the base of two columns in the northwest corner. One is turned completely upside down. The other rests on its side. Legend says they were positioned this way deliberately... to negate the power of Medusa's deadly gaze. But scholars have a more practical theory. Many of the columns here were recycled from older Roman temples and forums. A similar Gorgon head was found at the Forum of Constantine, suggesting these sculptures may have originally decorated that ancient public square. When Justinian's builders needed column bases after the devastating Nika riots, they simply grabbed whatever stone blocks fit... and the orientation of a pagan face was the Last thing on their minds.......... And one more secret! Look for the Weeping Column, carved with patterns resembling eyes and tears. Some say those carvings honor the hundreds of slaves who died during construction. Others say the column simply weeps because water constantly seeps through its stone. Either way... in this underground forest of ancient marble, even the columns have stories to tell.