Treasures of the World with Bettany Hughes - Season 1, Episode 5 Istanbul
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00:00I'm traveling the world, exploring secrets and wonders.
00:08This is really tight.
00:11An adventure by land and sea to the most fascinating places.
00:17This is absolutely incredible.
00:20I've been given special access to significant and surprising treasures.
00:25It's so tiny and absolutely unique.
00:29Buried in ancient sites, extraordinary buildings, and glorious works of art that help to explain
00:38the story of us.
00:41Come with me to discover how the past shapes our lives.
00:46This time, the magnificent Turkish city, Istanbul.
00:52This is a metropolis that is so significant, so strategic, it became a power base for massively
00:59influential world cultures, from the ancient Romans, to the Byzantines, to the Ottomans,
01:05to the Turks, and a fair few others in between.
01:10Istanbul's story is unique.
01:13It's somewhere to understand history from all points of the compass.
01:20I've been coming here for 30 years, and every time I discover something new, oh, look at this.
01:26What's in this great city are treasures that give us brilliant clues to individual lives
01:32and imperial power.
01:36This is a rich story of continuity and collaboration.
01:40This is a city that's a melting pot of aspirations and inspiration.
01:45It's a city that can teach us about the story of the world and about ourselves.
01:56Geography makes history here, and that's the old city ranging across that promontory
02:08of lands between the Sea of Marmara and the Bosphorus, and the centuries that it was described
02:14as a diamond between emeralds and sapphires, a city garlanded by waters.
02:25Istanbul is a vital crossroads between the continents of Asia and Europe, and across
02:31the Black Sea to what is now Russia, down through the Mediterranean to Africa.
02:37Thank you, bye, bye.
02:50It's not just a city that's witnessed the rise and fall of civilizations.
02:55It's somewhere that's nourished civilization itself.
03:01I'm in the heart of Istanbul's old city, somewhere that's reinvented itself over the centuries
03:07with every wave of culture that's crashed in.
03:11My first treasure is my favorite building on earth.
03:14It changed architecture forever, and it's the home to a rather inspiring story.
03:20It still dominates the skyline of Istanbul today, Hagia Sophia, or Hagia Sophia, which
03:26means holy wisdom.
03:34Completed in 537 CE, for a thousand years, Hagia Sophia was the biggest church in the
03:41world, a beacon for the Byzantine Empire, Christian Eastern Roman Empire, whose headquarters
03:47were in Istanbul, then called Constantinople, for over a millennium, from the 4th century
03:53to the 15th.
03:56It's one of the wonders of the medieval world, created by one of the city's legendary power
04:01couples, Justinian and his wife, Theodora.
04:05Now Emperor Justinian rose from pretty modest beginnings, and Theodora was right at the
04:09bottom of the pile, but they ended up controlling an empire that spanned a million square miles.
04:17The Byzantine Emperor Justinian had been born into a peasant family, and his wife Theodora
04:24was the daughter of a bear-keeper, but there was no holding them back.
04:33They kick-started a series of progressive social reforms, and a huge building program
04:38to improve the city, and Hagia Sophia was at its heart.
04:51In 1453, this church, well this whole city, was taken over by the Muslim Ottoman Turk,
04:58Mehmet II.
05:00Constantinople would become Istanbul, and this place would become a mosque, as it is
05:06again today.
05:16The dome is still one of the biggest in the world.
05:26Surviving over a thousand earthquakes, it was a revolution in architecture.
05:35Hidden columns support the impossibly huge central space, and when it was built, people
05:41said the dome was suspended by golden chains from heaven.
05:46It's a place I completely adore.
05:52The interior is decorated with over a thousand years' worth of artworks.
05:58Theodora and Justinian left their mark.
06:01That's their initials carved into these capitals, an incredible statement for a woman at this
06:07time.
06:08And their grand project was built in record time, just five years, ten months, and four
06:14days.
06:19Hagia Sophia has secrets, and I'm granted special permission to enter its upper galleries.
06:28Ramped cobbled paths, built wide enough so high-ranking officials could ascend on horseback,
06:34lead to the second floor.
06:36It's great to get access up here, because it's not normally open.
06:42It's actually strangely appropriate, because for centuries, this was the only place that
06:48women could come in the church.
06:54In fact, this was the domain of the empress herself.
07:02And this is her view from the gallery, still spectacular.
07:08No expense was spared here.
07:11Marble was imported from the eastern deserts of Egypt and the southern shores of Greece,
07:16tiny islands in the Sea of Marmara.
07:20There was building material from the borders of what is now Syria and Lebanon, and the
07:24whole church was decorated with bronze and silver and gold and precious gems, all glittering
07:32in the light of a thousand lamps.
07:38I think it's Justinian and Theodora saying, look, the meek really can inherit the earth.
07:47This green disc marks the very spot where the empress herself would have stood.
07:56And being here, isn't it amazing to think that I am physically inhabiting history?
08:02And she'd have stood here to look out over the rites and mysteries and sacred rituals
08:09in her great church down below.
08:17Don't you think this place just sings of promise and ambition and a world on the cusp of change?
08:28This is Justinian and Theodora, determined to impress.
08:46They made another grand impression just outside Hagia Sophia, in Constantinople's Hippodrome.
08:54Almost a third of a mile long, this is a worthy playground for the city that also called itself
09:00the New Rome, which meant there was a senate and a forum and animal hunts and chariot racing.
09:13So you should imagine massive tiered stone benches here that could seat well over 30,000.
09:20And all along the middle, what was basically a grand outdoor museum, boasting the best
09:25and most beautiful sculptures from across the ancient world, including that obelisk
09:31from ancient Egypt.
09:32Now we know that Justinian loved coming here and he built himself a special viewing platform,
09:39an imperial box called the Cathisma, from which he could watch all the sporting drama down below.
09:48But there was trouble ahead and the original wooden church of Hagia Sophia would suffer.
09:57In 532, things turned sour.
10:01The city's population, furious at rising taxes, rioted, baying for blood,
10:07torching everything in sight.
10:09Justinian was ready to flee, but Theodora came up with an amazing speech.
10:15She said, OK, you can go, there's money ready and ships waiting,
10:19but I intend to stay an empress.
10:22I say the royal purple makes a good funeral shroud.
10:30In one day, close on 50,000 unarmed rioters were killed.
10:3610% of the city's population.
10:39Constantinople was all but burnt to the ground
10:42and that earlier wooden Hagia Sophia was one of the casualties.
10:47But Theodora's words had persuaded Justinian to stay
10:51and the two of them set about rebuilding the city
10:54with the new Hagia Sophia, built of stone and brick, their pride and joy.
11:00Just as the showgirl had reinvented herself as an empress,
11:04the Mother Church had risen from the ashes of conflict.
11:11Hagia Sophia is a treasure because it's an incarnation
11:15of the power and ambition of the new Byzantine social order,
11:20a culture that allowed even women like Theodora to achieve greatness.
11:26I'm in Istanbul in Turkey where, for centuries,
11:30cultures, religions and civilisations have collided,
11:33creating some of the world's most remarkable wonders.
11:38My next treasure is an incredible feat of engineering
11:42that ensured this burgeoning city could survive in good times and in bad.
11:50Constantinople's water system was one of the most sophisticated in the world,
11:55a network of aqueducts, channels and reservoirs
11:58that carried water over hundreds of miles.
12:03I'm incredibly lucky to be in Istanbul,
12:05when the mother of all historic underground water reservoirs,
12:10the magnificent Basilica Cistern,
12:13is being drained of water for restoration.
12:16While it's closed to the public,
12:18the conservation team has kindly allowed me to visit.
12:22This is a unique opportunity to explore
12:25a world-class engineering marvel without visitors and without water.
12:30I can't believe I've been allowed in here!
12:33This underground cistern
12:35was built during the reign of Emperor Justinian
12:38and his empress, Theodora.
12:41It took 14 years of hard labour
12:44to dig out the tonnes of earth and rocks beneath the city.
12:48But it's not just a 100,000-square-foot tank.
12:51It's canopied by a fabulous vaulted ceiling
12:54supported by 336 marble columns,
12:58each one 27 feet tall.
13:02It is such a remarkable place.
13:07When I first came here, I have to say, over 35 years ago,
13:11there was mud right the way up.
13:13I don't know if you can see that brown mark on the columns.
13:16And then there's been water down here,
13:18so the water's been drained.
13:20So I'm treading on Byzantine tiles.
13:22It's so exciting.
13:23So these are tiles from the 6th century AD.
13:26And you just get a sense of how much time has passed.
13:29And you just get a sense
13:31of the extraordinary scale of this place.
13:34So you could fit over 30 Olympic-size swimming pools here.
13:38And it's like the most majestic,
13:41extraordinary cathedral of engineering.
13:47Water was scarce here,
13:49often brought in through secret passageways
13:52so the city's population could endure sieges and enemy attack.
13:56For cistern expert Professor Feridun Özgümüş,
14:00this is a stellar example.
14:02It's so huge, the scale.
14:04The scale is amazing.
14:05Why is it so exciting? Why do you love it?
14:07Because I've been to this cistern thousands of times,
14:11but today is my first time without the water,
14:14and it's more beautiful.
14:15All of the column capitals and the columns themselves
14:18were all in the water,
14:19so it was not possible to see the column capitals.
14:22Just to be able to see the water,
14:24Just to be able to see them like this
14:26without the water is amazing.
14:28Yes, I'm very happy.
14:30Really, I'm very happy.
14:32I'm taking photographs.
14:34There's very little water here in Constantinople,
14:37so where does the water come from?
14:39Water was coming from Thrace, or Thracia in ancient Greek.
14:43How many years' worth of water have you got here?
14:46This would keep the city safe for, what, one year, two years?
14:49Almost two years.
14:51And it was a long time for invaders.
14:54When they besieged the city, they couldn't continue.
14:57So those cisterns gave a long life to Constantinople,
15:02and this one, this basilica cistern,
15:04is the best example among those underground cisterns.
15:10Beyond useful, it's beautiful.
15:13Built with marble columns and carvings,
15:15recycled from ancient temples and Byzantine palaces.
15:20And with the water drained,
15:22it's a thrilling chance for me
15:24to inspect one spectacular feature up close
15:27that I've always found intriguing.
15:43How incredible is this?
15:46So this is the head of the monstrous Medusa,
15:49the goddess who was so powerful
15:51her stare would literally petrify men.
15:54They would turn them to stone.
15:56She had snakes for hair,
15:58and you can see these incredible serpents
16:00crawling round her face.
16:02And it's obviously an older carving
16:04that was used from the earlier city.
16:06And there's lots of stories about it.
16:08Some people say that she's had her head turned upside down
16:11to kind of get rid of her pagan power,
16:13or that she's used it in this way
16:15just so that there's a nice, convenient, flat surface
16:17to balance this column on.
16:19But I just think there's something else going on.
16:22I think she was thought to be so powerful
16:25she was being used down here to scare people off
16:28to say, don't you dare touch our precious water supply.
16:42The Basilica Cistern is a treasure for me
16:45because it celebrates human ingenuity
16:48and engineering and resilience
16:50and simply one of the most beautiful things in life,
16:53water.
16:59With a history reaching back beyond antiquity
17:02and attracting settlers from across continents,
17:05the Basilica Cistern is just one
17:07of Istanbul's surprising underground wonders.
17:10Istanbul is a bit like a kind of historical layer cake.
17:14But because it's a thriving modern city too,
17:17there's lots of construction here.
17:19And pretty much every time there's a new development
17:22an amazing bit of archaeology is discovered.
17:27BeÅŸiktaÅŸ, on the European shore of the Bosporus,
17:30is one of Istanbul's oldest districts.
17:34I've got to tip off that there's some incredible stuff
17:36coming out of here.
17:38So this is the metro station that's being expanded.
17:44This is looking very promising.
17:49When workers discovered ancient human remains
17:52they called in a team of archaeologists.
17:55Hi. Is it OK for me to go in?
17:58Yes.
18:04Great, thanks.
18:06And they've invited me to see their work in progress.
18:14Oh, it's huge.
18:16Oh, my goodness.
18:19So you've got Ottoman period stuff at the top
18:23and then Byzantine,
18:25then Roman,
18:27then Greek.
18:29Very careful where I tread.
18:31And then Bronze Age,
18:33which is extremely exciting
18:35because we've never really understood
18:37who the first people were.
18:39It's discoveries like this
18:41that are filling in the gaps
18:44for the settlers of this great city.
18:47These round kurgan burials
18:49suggest they were from Central Asia or Thrace.
18:53The people here are totally lovely.
18:55They've invited me up to have a look
18:57at some of the other things that they've found.
18:59How amazing.
19:05Oh, my goodness.
19:07Talk about a fine sense.
19:09So these beautiful storage jars,
19:12those will be Byzantine,
19:14so the kind of medieval period.
19:16And this is all going to be
19:18early Bronze Age and Iron Age,
19:21so back to the time of the cemeteries.
19:24So you have the cremations
19:26and then the burials.
19:28OK.
19:30So this is what I've heard about,
19:32that there's this very distinctive marking
19:34on the pottery here
19:36which tells us that
19:38the people who were first here
19:40were nomads who travelled
19:42down from across the Black Sea,
19:44down through the Balkans,
19:46down the Bosporus and into Anatolia.
19:48And it's almost like a mark
19:50they left in the clay
19:52as if it was being stitched,
19:54so it's a kind of imprint.
19:56So that tells us
19:58that these early inhabitants
20:00were those nomads
20:02who came and made their life here.
20:04Ah.
20:06So this is
20:085,000 years old.
20:10Not too shabby, eh?
20:12Not too shabby.
20:18It's meticulous work
20:20as the team sift through every inch
20:22of this ancient site.
20:26And just as I'm about to leave,
20:28there's an exciting new find.
20:30The guys on the excavation here
20:32just found a coin.
20:34They've just pulled it out
20:36and they've let me hold it.
20:38Oh, can I see what it is?
20:40It needs cleaning.
20:42The coin's marked
20:44with the image of Theodora's husband,
20:46Emperor Justinian,
20:48a relic of the city's role
20:50in a vast network of trade
20:52spanning Europe, Asia and Africa.
20:54You need to tell me,
20:56look at that, look at that!
20:58It's treasure coming out of the earth
21:00while I'm here.
21:02When boats set sail
21:05sailors would toss gold coins
21:07into the sea for good luck
21:09and because that little Justinian coin
21:11was found in a well,
21:13I know it's a bit fanciful
21:15but I would love to think
21:17that somebody put that in there
21:19to bring them joy in their day
21:21and it has certainly brought me
21:23huge joy and a lot of luck
21:25because I'm here on a beautiful
21:27archaeological site and real archaeology
21:29is being discovered in front of me.
21:31Amazing.
21:33A truly incredible discovery in 2004
21:35made waves
21:37right across the world.
21:39Now I've seen a lot of
21:41treasures in my life
21:43but this next one just
21:45knocks me sideways.
21:47When Asia was being joined
21:49to Europe by the Bosporus Tunnel
21:5140 feet
21:53beneath the surface
21:55a thrilling mystery was discovered.
21:57It was the remains
21:59of a late Roman harbour
22:01and 100 years old
22:03it was the hub of the medieval world.
22:07At Yenikapi
22:09on the European side of the city
22:11archaeologists discovered
22:13the port of Theodosius.
22:15It boasted an
22:17astonishing 37 shipwrecks
22:19was one of the biggest
22:21archaeological digs in the world
22:23and startling evidence
22:25for the busiest port
22:27in the Eastern Mediterranean
22:29At Istanbul University's labs
22:31hundreds of fragments
22:33of those ships
22:35preserved in water tanks
22:37and scientifically
22:39analysed.
22:41Hi
22:43Merhaba
22:45In charge of the process
22:47is Professor Ufuk Kotrabas
22:49Hello
22:51Professor
22:53it is such an honour
22:55to be in this lab
22:57This is the most incredible
22:59project, I know it is one of the biggest
23:01archaeological projects in the world
23:03Yes, we found
23:05Byzantine harbour
23:07and more than 30 shipwrecks
23:09so it was an amazing
23:11excavation
23:13You've got goldfish
23:15in some of the tanks
23:17Why have you got goldfish there?
23:19We are using goldfish against
23:21larvae of mosquito
23:23and first two goldfish
23:26belong to my son
23:28So they are kind of lab assistants
23:30and pets here
23:32It will take the team
23:34even with the help of the goldfish
23:3650 years to work
23:38through the archaeological finds
23:40Tens of thousands
23:42of crates worth from the massive
23:44port
23:46A huge commercial hub
23:48and the beating heart
23:50of the Byzantine Empire
23:52Can you just
23:54explain to me what exactly
23:56what it is, what amazing thing it is
23:58that we are looking at
24:00These planks belong to
24:02a galley, a warship
24:04small warship
24:06They are light and fast ships
24:08But I know you have also found
24:10fishing boats and merchant vessels
24:12and there is one
24:14I was lucky enough to be there
24:16when you were excavating it
24:18This is a floor timber
24:20of the shipwreck
24:22with freeze drying
24:24technique
24:26So if you want you can hold
24:28you know
24:30Oh my gosh
24:32I can't quite believe you are letting me hold
24:34This is so incredible
24:36This boat was excavated
24:38packed with amphorae
24:4050 or so amphorae jars
24:42Yes and also we found a brazier
24:44a jug, a casserole bowl
24:46a beaker, bulk of olive seeds
24:48and also cherry stones inside
24:50A reed basket
24:52It's a real time capsule
24:54A reed basket with cherry stones
24:56that those sailors would have been munching on
24:58I mean you know
25:001100 years ago
25:02and you found them
25:04That is just staggering
25:06It's mind blowing
25:08Captain most probably liked eating cherry
25:10Obviously he did
25:12I actually don't want to
25:14give it back to you
25:16but I better put it down
25:18What a special treat
25:20What a treasure of a thing
25:22And I must ask you
25:24all of these finds are just incredible
25:26They have amazing details
25:28about history that they can share
25:30But they also do tell us
25:32how important Constantinople was
25:34at this time
25:36This is really a city on the move
25:38It's hyper connected
25:40In that time Constantinople was
25:42the centre of Mediterranean
25:44Most probably centre of the world
25:47Obviously you're illuminating
25:49a whole world
25:51and I know it's really tricky
25:53managing all of this
25:55So it's just splendid
25:57Thank you very much
26:03Some tantalising glimpses
26:05of the golden era of this port
26:07are now stored at the Sadberghanem Museum
26:13So these are the kinds of goods
26:15that would be traded
26:17through the Theodosian Harbour
26:19and then used by the inhabitants
26:21of Constantinople
26:23It is just such a table of treasures
26:25I don't know where to start
26:27For instance you've got an oil lamp
26:29and if you think of the oil lamps
26:31from the classical world
26:33very typically they were decorated
26:35with pagan gods and goddesses
26:37but because Constantinople is a Christian city
26:39there's a cross on this one
26:41These beautiful, fabulous ceramics
26:43show the influence of the east
26:45of the Islamic world
26:47This one's decorated with a rabbit
26:49and a dragon
26:51and I love this little thing
26:53It's a kind of little rod
26:55that would have held a candle at the end
26:57and that's very appropriate
26:59because contemporaries described Byzantium
27:01as being a city of light
27:03with candles and oil lamps burning everywhere
27:07Intrepid traders would have travelled
27:09thousands of miles
27:11from Constantinople
27:13to buy and sell precious goods
27:15just like these
27:17But of all the amazing
27:19things here
27:21I've got to say this little tiny one
27:23is probably my favourite
27:25It's a beautiful earring
27:27that was possibly lost
27:29by a Byzantine woman
27:31This is just fantastic
27:33This is uber precious
27:35It's decorated
27:37with emeralds
27:39and rubies
27:41and pearls
27:43and you can just imagine
27:45a woman from the period proudly wearing it
27:47Just being up close to this
27:49it short circuits you
27:51into the life of those women and men
27:53from the medieval times
27:55It's just such a treat
27:58So many details
28:00have been revealed
28:02from the digs
28:04that archaeologists
28:06have managed to recreate
28:08a perfect replica
28:10of that merchant ship
28:12so the bit of wood
28:14that I was holding
28:16It's really touching
28:18being close to it
28:20because you can just imagine
28:22those sailors cooking their meals
28:24eating cherries
28:26sailing out across
28:28thousands of miles worth of sea
28:30and it makes you think how brave
28:32they were because it's a small boat
28:34But this ship
28:36is completely seaworthy
28:38and in the right conditions
28:40it still sails around the waters
28:42across Istanbul
28:50The new archaeological discoveries
28:52here in Istanbul
28:54are to be treasured
28:56because they prove
28:58that this place has been a linchpin
29:00across cultures from the ancient
29:02to the medieval worlds
29:04and they also show
29:06that as a species we're driven
29:08to connect across land and sea
29:10to travel
29:12to explore
29:14and to have the opportunity
29:16to be part of a wider world
29:24Strategically positioned
29:26at the crossroads between Asia
29:28and Europe, Constantinople
29:30the Queen of Cities
29:32was the ultimate prize for international powers
29:34After years
29:36of circling the city by land and sea
29:38the Ottoman Turks
29:40took Constantinople in 1453
29:44Islam had arrived
29:46Great mosques
29:48and palaces were raised
29:50It was the dawn
29:52of a new era
29:54including
29:56the creation of an entire
29:58world within a world
30:00a huge citadel
30:02protected by three miles of solid stone wall
30:04overlooking
30:06the Golden Horn, the Bosphorus
30:08and the Sea of Marmara
30:18This is the Topkapi Palace
30:20It was a jewel
30:22in the Ottoman Empire
30:24and it still dominates the historic skyline
30:26here in Istanbul today
30:28and is one of the most magnificent palaces
30:30in the world
30:38This 7,500 square foot palace
30:40was an administrative
30:42and artistic central hub
30:44of the Ottoman Empire
30:46for close on 400 years
30:50You can imagine ambassadors
30:52approaching this place
30:54with real trepidation
30:56because it's where big affairs of state
30:58were decided, including military decisions
31:00and actually this whole
31:02council hall is designed to look
31:04like a military campaign tent
31:06The Sultan wasn't actually
31:08here in person
31:10but people were told he was listening in
31:12to every decision through a grill
31:14above the hall
31:20The Sultan was the premier
31:22figure of the palace
31:24supported by his imperial
31:26council
31:30Formal, lavishly
31:32decorated, Topkapi
31:34was a theatre of power
31:36It showcased
31:38nature too
31:40Ottomans welcomed the natural world
31:42into their cities
31:44The palace was home to
31:46exotic plants
31:49and even a world famous zoo
31:53The beautiful gardens of Topkapi
31:55reveal how the famously
31:57powerful Ottoman Empire
31:59reveled in nature
32:03The first three courtyards
32:05were laid out like walled parks
32:07with animals roaming free
32:09so here there would have been
32:11gazelles and peacocks
32:13and even little tortoises
32:15Today the gazelles
32:17are long gone
32:19but the gardens retain a sense
32:21of serenity and majesty
32:25But the palace was also
32:27a semi-sacred space
32:29designed around gardens
32:31that represented a kind of
32:33earthly paradise
32:35and the bounty and unified
32:37cosmology of Allah's creation
32:42Designed for the
32:45Designed for contemplation
32:47gardens became a crucial part
32:49of Islamic Istanbul
32:53The Ottomans celebrated their
32:55love of the garden in many art forms
33:00Much Ottoman poetry
33:02idolized gardens as a sanctuary
33:04far away from worldly cares
33:06where you could live a
33:08leisurely life and contemplate
33:10the beauty of things
33:12There are lines that describe
33:14sweet heavenly scents
33:16and crimson roses
33:18but then there's also
33:20a melancholic verse that says
33:22that just like a rose
33:24happiness can never
33:26last forever
33:29The Topkapi Gardens
33:31an incarnation of some of the ideals
33:33of the Ottoman Empire
33:35became the model for palace grounds
33:37and provincial courts all over the Empire
33:40We know that both male
33:42and female gardeners worked here
33:44breeding tulip flowers
33:46that were then disseminated
33:48right across Europe
33:50The Ottomans believed that their
33:52planting shouldn't try to better
33:54the natural world
33:56but embellish it
34:00One sultan ordered
34:0250,000 tulip bulbs
34:04100,000 hyacinth bulbs
34:06and 40 tonnes
34:08of rose bushes
34:10almost certainly for this garden
34:16But it's not just the flowers
34:18that make this place so special
34:22Geometrical pools
34:24fountains and garden pavilions
34:26adorn what some described
34:28as an earthly paradise
34:38These beautiful
34:40Iznik tiles are the decoration
34:42of choice here at Topkapi
34:44and of course they're still
34:46absolutely stunning today
34:48but in their own day
34:50they were revolutionary
34:52and this white glaze
34:54was made of quartz
34:56which really shines out
34:58and there was a kind of secret
35:00recipe for the colours
35:02which is still a mystery today
35:04but one thing we do know
35:06is that it could take
35:08up to 70 days
35:10to make a single tile
35:18Geometric and floral motifs
35:20rosettes, stylised tulips
35:22roses, carnations
35:24and hyacinths
35:26were drawn on paper
35:28perforated by needle
35:30and transferred onto the tile
35:32When the tiles were glazed
35:34the vibrant colours
35:36turquoise, cobalt
35:38malachite and coral emerged
35:44Their symmetry represents purity
35:46the flowers, fertility
35:48Some of the very finest
35:50Iznik tiles ever produced
35:52decorate these fabulous kiosks
35:56The Sultan had this built
35:58to commemorate the dead
36:00and it's decorated with reeds
36:02of blue and white flowers
36:06Inspired by the opulent
36:08tents Ottoman commanders
36:10used on military campaign
36:12kiosks were installed
36:14so the Sultan could appreciate
36:16his natural surroundings
36:18and to host visiting dignitaries
36:22This kiosk celebrates victory
36:24after a 40 day siege
36:26to capture Baghdad in 1638
36:32The hall where the imperial princes
36:34were circumcised
36:36is also beautifully tiled
36:40It's sumptuous symmetry
36:42designed to celebrate
36:44the Sultan's power, faith
36:46and appreciation
36:48of nature's purity
36:52The walls of the kiosk
36:54are decorated with
36:56the remains of the Sultan
36:58who died here
37:00in 1770
37:08After one circumcision ceremony
37:10French diplomats reported
37:12that the Sultan impressed
37:14with birds of prey
37:16and lions and giraffes
37:18and even two elephants
37:26The Sultans who established
37:28the palace described them
37:30as a place of beauty and pleasure
37:32happiness and enjoyment
37:42The Topkapi Palace
37:44overlooking the sapphires
37:46that surround this
37:48dominant of a city
37:50the Sea of Marmara, the Bosphorus
37:52and the Golden Horn
37:54is packed with treasures
37:56because it's a citadel
37:58that celebrates the value of nature
38:00and even though it was built
38:02by mighty Ottoman warriors
38:04it respects the beauty
38:06of the natural world
38:22My next treasure
38:24is a short boat ride away
38:26across the Sea of Marmara
38:28A string of nine islands
38:30called the Prince's Islands
38:32because the Byzantine Emperors
38:34would, on occasion, exile here
38:36princes who threatened their power
38:40For most, the islands
38:42have provided a welcome relief
38:48The Prince's Islands are where
38:50people from Istanbul would come
38:52often bringing a picnic
38:56I'm heading to Bukhara
38:58the big island in Turkish
39:00the largest and most popular
39:02of the Prince's Islands
39:046,000 live here
39:06with a massive summer population
39:08bump to 40,000
39:10During the 19th century
39:12it was the place to leave families
39:14over the summer as the money spinners
39:16commuted by ferry to Istanbul
39:18City homes were
39:20swapped for fabulous
39:22summer houses called yalis
39:24with gardens overlooking
39:26the Marmara Sea
39:28But before I explore
39:30I'm going to start my day
39:32the Ottoman way
39:34You know how they say you should breakfast
39:36like a king? Well, the Ottomans
39:38certainly did that in style
39:40so this is a really typical
39:42Ottoman breakfast
39:44and it's interesting because you've got influences
39:46that are both local and from
39:48far and wide
39:50so there are dates from Mecca and Medina
39:52halloumi from Cyprus
39:54borek from across the Black Sea
39:56and these fantastic little donuts
39:58that come from the Greek Islands
40:00probably the most local thing
40:02and possibly the most delicious thing
40:04on the table too is this jam
40:06so jam here is made of plum
40:08and lavender and often
40:10of rose petals
40:18On the bougainvillea lined streets
40:20in dappled light
40:22there's another rhythm to life here
40:24a real contrast to the
40:26bustle of Istanbul
40:32By the 20th century
40:34Bukhara became a luxurious resort
40:38Celebrities, royalty and politicians
40:40the likes of Maria Callas
40:42Edward VIII and Wallace Simpson
40:44and President Ataturk
40:46Bukhara packs in fabulous hotels
40:48including the splendid Palace Hotel
40:52A Turkish entrepreneur
40:54built the hotel in 1908
40:56for the bourgeoisie
41:00With its marbled staircases
41:0230s furniture and fine rooms
41:04it combines both continental
41:06and Turkish styles
41:08It's a symbol of the
41:10multi-ethnic, multicultural makeup
41:12of the historic melting pot
41:14of Istanbul
41:16and her neighbouring islands
41:18There's a bit of a tradition here
41:20to go and buy
41:22to buy this sorbet
41:24so this is a family
41:26that's been making ice cream here
41:28for at least a century
41:30and the different brothers sell
41:32sorbets on the different islands
41:36Oh beautiful
41:40Every time I come I try to resist it
41:42and it's impossible
41:44Amazing
41:46Thank you
41:48Bye, take care
41:58One of the world's
42:00most famous revolutionaries
42:02also found sanctuary on this island
42:04and called it home
42:06This garden is so overgrown
42:08I can't actually get in
42:10but I could not walk past
42:12and not show you this
42:14So this is where Trotsky
42:16was exiled for four years
42:18after he was forced to leave Russia
42:20and it's where he wrote his autobiography
42:22and people described him being here
42:24as happy as a child
42:26and I'm not surprised
42:28because he had massive gardens
42:30and a lobster pool
42:32and a sea view
42:34so it might have been exile
42:36but this is exile in paradise
42:39The island provided a brief respite
42:41for Trotsky
42:43before Stalin's agents
42:45eventually caught up with him in Mexico
42:49And it's not the only ruin on Bukhara
42:51with an extraordinary history
42:53Hidden up here in the pine forests
42:55right at the top of the island
42:57there's something really special
43:03A mysterious building
43:05constructed in 1898
43:07by a French Ottoman architect
43:09It was originally meant to be
43:11the Principio Palace
43:13a kind of super luxury hotel
43:15and casino
43:17owned by the same people
43:19who owned the Pera Palace
43:21in Istanbul
43:23where Agatha Christie
43:25was supposed to be inspired
43:27to write Murder on the Orient Express
43:29and it is the biggest
43:31wooden building in Europe
43:33But a curious chain of events
43:35was completely repurposed
43:39But it wasn't given its gambling license
43:41so a wealthy Greek widow
43:43with the help of
43:45146 pieces of gold
43:47donated by the Sultan
43:49took this building over
43:51and turned it into an orphanage
43:59For over 60 years
44:01this vast space
44:03206 rooms
44:05across 200,000 square feet
44:07with a library
44:09a primary school
44:11and vocational workshops
44:13became home for Greek orphans
44:15The Sultan donated a daily ration of meat
44:17the imperial kitchens
44:19baked their bread
44:21A thousand children at a time
44:23could be looked after here
44:25and as the years went on
44:27it wasn't just orphans
44:29but girls and boys
44:31There are incredibly touching little remnants
44:33like this pair of shoes
44:35There is a kind of haunting beauty
44:37to this place, isn't there?
44:39And it also feels very appropriate
44:41for an island
44:43because islands can be places
44:45of refuge or sanctuary
44:47but also of exile
44:49The Prince's Islands
44:59The Prince's Islands
45:01are treasures for me
45:03because they provided a refuge for many
45:05from the poorest to the richest
45:07from the princes of the Byzantine age
45:09to the political refugees
45:11of the 20th century
45:13a place of sanctuary
45:15and opportunity
45:17Like Istanbul itself
45:19a city with a special dynamism
45:21driven by its waterways
45:23seas and rivers
45:25a city that's witnessed history
45:27and made it
45:29one of my favourite places on earth
45:37For me, Istanbul is cosmopolitan
45:39in the true sense of the word
45:41It's a city
45:43for citizens of the world
45:45somewhere that you can understand
45:47history in the round
45:49from all points of the compass
45:51It's been described as the queen of cities
45:53the fortunate city
45:55the greatest city on earth
45:57and right here, right now
45:59who can argue with that?
46:15The Prince's Islands
46:17are treasures for me
46:19because they provided a refuge for many
46:21from the poorest to the richest
46:23from the political refugees
46:25of the 20th century
46:27a place of sanctuary
46:29and opportunity
46:31Like Istanbul itself
46:33a city that's witnessed history
46:35and made it
46:37one of my favourite places on earth