Istanbul (Turkey), the city of the hundred graveyards.

Not many cities in the world are as fascinating to visit as Istanbul, a city with over 2,600 years of history and currently inhabited by more than 15 million people. This 5^th most populous city on the planet lies between two continents: part of its metropolis in Europe and the other part, across the Strait of Bosphorus, in Asia.



Ostaköy Mosque. Istanbul



Throughout its long history, Istanbul has been the capital of three different empires: Roman, Byzantine and Ottoman and has been conquered  and lost by Persians, Greeks, Romans and Crusaders. It is a city of many cultures and identities, a city which does not leave anyone indifferent.

Istanbul is currently very popular with European tourists. When you go, you must visit Hagia Sophia, the Blue Mosque, Topkapi Palace, buy something in the Grand Bazaar, the Spices Bazaar, take a boat tour on the Bosphorus, but....  What about its cemeteries? Just like the city, they are unique.

To start with,  there are over a hundred cemeteries (mezarligi in Turkish) within the city. Seems no one knows the exact number,  the main reason being that burial sites in the Arab culture always remain sacred ground, and just as mosques, are never moved to other areas or designated for other uses. The cemeteries of Istanbul are of all sizes, from very small cemeteries in the city center next to mosques, to the huge cemetery Karacaahmet, further away, which some say is the largest cemetery in the world (for sure it’s the largest in Turkey).



Hagia Sophia. Istanbul



The guidebooks will recommend you visit these three: (1) Eirnekapi Sehitligi Mezarligi (also known as Eyüp Mezarligi) located in the European part of Istanbul on a hill overlooking the Golden Horn (entrance to the sea). Burials here were initiated after the Siege of Constantinople in 1453 to provide tombs for the Ottoman soldiers who died in battle.   (2) Asri Asiyan Mezarligi, also on the European side, this is the resting place of important Turkish artists. Overlooking the Bosphorus, it’s a smaller cemetery with  beautiful views. (3) Karacaahmet Mezarligi, on the Asian side of Istanbul, was founded around 1550. This gigantic cemetery, a city in itself,  is the resting place of over 150 million Muslims. And it’s over 400 hundred years old.



Graves of men, Ottoman period.



However, one doesn’t have to look hard to find a pretty cemetery for a quiet walk in Istanbul. Scattered throughout the city there are numerous lovely graveyards worth visiting, you come across them without the help of any street map. The ones I visited caught my attention because they looked like patios or gardens from the outside and I wanted to go in.



Small cemetery near the Grand Bazaar.





Woman's grave.



The tombs for the most part are above ground and the head stones very interesting. The older headstones are the ones that attracted my attention - because of the different symbols used on them. Most of them are tall, narrow standing stones with information about the occupant. However, there are important differences between graves for men and graves for women. Those gravestones of men from the Ottoman period feature a stone turban on top, and curiously it’s the folds of each sculpted turban which show the man’s social class/status: more folds, more class or status. When in 1828 turbans were banned, graves for men began to be decorated with the Turkish fez (typical red, tasseled, pot-like hat).  Very different are the headstones of women, quite ornamental and adorned with small sculpted flowers (usually roses), one blossom for each child she gave birth to. Or  there may be a live planted rose bush on the woman’s grave.

Men's graves, after turbans were banned.

It’s quite common to see the people of Istanbul in the city cemeteries: walking, resting or quietly visiting the graves of their loved ones.  Each that I visited was a welcome haven from the crowded, noisy streets just outside.