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Basilica Cistern

File:Cisterna_Basílica,_Estambul,_Turquía,_2024-09-28,_DD_58-60_HDR.jpg · Wikimedia Commons · See Wikimedia Commons

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Basilica Cistern

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cistern of Byzantine Constantinople

Key facts

Location
Istanbul
Public access
Yes
Website
www .yerebatan .com

via Wikipedia infobox

Official website

Link to the official site · not written by Vinony

Described at

Link to a page describing this subject · not written by Vinony

Wikidata facts

Country
Turkey
Located in
Fatih
Location
Istanbul
Official website
yerebatan.com
Image
Cisterna Basílica, Estambul, Turquía, 2024-09-28, DD 58-60 HDR.jpg
Show 7 more facts
architectural style
Byzantine architecture
Commons category
Basilica Cistern
Commons gallery
Yerebatan Sarnıcı
native label
Yerebatan Sarnıcı
commissioned by
Justinian I
located in/on physical feature
Marmara Region
Sources (3)

via Wikidata · CC0

~9 min read

Encyclopedic overview

The Basilica Cistern, or Cisterna Basilica (Greek: Βασιλική Κινστέρνα, Turkish: Yerebatan Sarnıcı or Yerebatan Sarayı, "Subterranean Cistern" or "Subterranean Palace"), is the largest of several hundred ancient cisterns that lie beneath the city of Istanbul, Turkey. The cistern, located 150 metres (490 ft) southwest of the Hagia Sophia on the historical peninsula of Sarayburnu, was built in the 6th century during the reign of Byzantine emperor Justinian I. Today it is kept with little water, for public access inside the space.

History

Excerpted from Wikipedia’s “Basilica Cistern” article, available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.

Gallery (9)

On the map