ONE OF THE LANDMARKS ON THE ISTANBUL SKYLINE
Istanbul, one of the most fascinating metropolises in the world, extends over two continents, and has a long and eventful history. The Maiden’s Tower, which was able to survive many civilizations and many cultures, is located exactly between Europe and Asia on a small rocky island 180 meters from the Asian side of today’s Üsküdar.
Also known as Leander’s Tower and affectionately known by the locals as the Girl’s Tower, it served many purposes over the centuries, including a customs post for merchants, a defense tower, lighthouse, quarantine station, radio station and even as a senior citizens’ home for officers. The building dates back to 408 BC, when it was built by the Athenian General Alcibiades as a waterway checkpoint and customs post for ships coming into Istanbul.
Later, when the city was under Byzantine rule, the tower was called “Arcla”, meaning “little castle”. Emperor Alexius Comnenus rebuilt it in 1110 AD and enlarged it into a fortress. It is said that one end of the long chain acting as a gate anchored here, was stretched just below the waterline over the Bosporus to the Mangana Palace on the other side, in order to protect the city from attacks from the sea.
In 1509 the tower was destroyed after one of the largest earthquakes and was restored by Sultan Selim I and converted into a lighthouse. In the 17th century, it was converted into a wooden lighthouse, which was completely destroyed by fire in 1719 and subsequently rebuilt in 1725. During the cholera epidemic of 1830, it served as a quarantine. It was finally given an automatic lighting system in 1920 and still acts as a functioning lighthouse to this day. Several legends surround the tower.
Read the full article in Issue 16
