Tekfur Sarayi

Tekfur Sarayi

           Tekfur Sarayi, means "Palace of the Sovereign" was constructed during late 13th century or early 14th as part of the Blachernae palace complex, situated in the walls of the city and was annex to the great Palace of Blachernai, a complex of buildings which stood further down the hill towards the Golden Horn. The palace was situated at the very highest point within the city walls and was visible over a wide area.

           It is the only well preserved of Byzantine domestic architecture at Constantinople. The top story was a vast throne room.The facade was decorated with heraldic symbols of the Palaiologan imperial dynasty and it was originally called the House of the Porphyrogennetos- which means "born in the Purple Chamber." It was built for Constantine, third son of Michael VIII and dates between 1261 and 1291.  It suffered damage during the cannonades of the Ottoman conquest of Constantinople (1453), and later served as part of the sultan's menagerie, later as a brothel, then as a pottery workshop and a poorhouse before being abandoned in the later 1700.

          During Ottoman times, the palace was used as a menagerie by the Sultans. They had several around the city and one in Tekfur Sarayi housed two huge elephants, giraffers and other 'docile' creatures. One can see houw the courtyard and ground floor could easily accomodate cages for animals as big as elephants and giraffes. 

           Here are two accounts from people who saw the Sultan's menagerie in the 16th century: A man named Belon wrote. "There one saw the ruins of a very ancient palace, which the vulgates called the palace of Constantine. The Turks used it to feed their elephants."

           Monsieur d'Aramon. Ambassador of the French King, reported. "There was also a certain place where one saw a monstrous number of savage beast which were well guarded and among theme were lions, lionesses, tamed wolves, wild wolves, wild cats, leopards, lynx, wild donkeys, and ostriches in quantity. In another place, one saw a certain beast which the residents called a sea pig and others called sea cow, in the same place they had two elephants, marvelously large."

          It is hard to know exactly when the palace lost its peaked roof and wooden floors, from a maps of the 18th century we can still see a roof, so when the place was 'ruined'- and what ruined meant at various stages-we don't know exactly.

       Source: https://www.pallasweb.com/deesis/tekfur-saray-blanchernai-byzantium.html