Bascilica Cistern

I got to enjoy one new site today:  a HUGE underground cistern that the city used in Roman times to withstand year long sieges.  The cistern was built in just five years.  One of the reasons it could be built quickly was because they reused cut pillars from other locations. Each one has a different capital design at the top of it.  This cistern was one of 50 throughout city in Roman times, fed by springs and aquaducts bringing water into the city for storage in case of a siege.  This is the largest one right near Topkapi Palace.  It holds 100,000 tons of water, enough to last for a year long siege (along with the other reservoirs).  It is nearly empty now and walkways have been built around it for visitors.  When it was in use the water reached the top of the pillars (20+ ft deep) up to the arched vaults.

This is the few from the entrance, just a few steps down from street level.  You can see the bricked vaulted arched ceilings and long rows of pillars.

The water is only about 2-3 feet deep now, but it once reached the top of the pillars.  You can see waterlines on the pillars where it was once midway up.  They had to dredge tons of sediment out of the cistern when they opened it to the public in 1989.  The floor is stone, but centuries of dirt had settled on top of it.

The head  of Medusa were placed at the bottom instead of the top of the pillar and oriented sideways to show disrespect for the paegan as the city converted to Christianity.

Quite a few people died in the construction of the cistern and they are commemorated by the swirls on this column.