Symbols of İstanbul

At the beginning of our text, I would like you to know one thing: the glorious city of İstanbul does not have just one or two symbols like other cities. Every one of the values that have made this city into today's İstanbul is among the symbols identified with this city. Let's cut it short and get started; here are the symbols of this city…

Maiden’s Tower

The Maiden's Tower, which is always referred to with the love stories in which it was the scene, is one of the most prominent symbols of İstanbul. Sunay Akın, a Turkish poet and author, describes the feelings of people looking at the tower as follows: ''İstanbul is a mother that soothes her baby at the suspension bridge, and the maiden's tower is her feeding bottle she cools in the sea''.

Galata Tower

Galata Tower was originally built in 528 A.D. by the Byzantine Emperor Anastasius to be used as a lighthouse, but today it is one of the oldest towers in İstanbul, from the top of which one can have a 360⁰ view of the whole city, providing the most spectacular view of this spectacular city. So, it deserves to rank at the top of our list, doesn’t it?

Süleymaniye Mosque

It is a must for every visitor in Istanbul, providing a spectacular view with its continuous silhouette also for everybody who have only seen it on postcards… Words fail to describe the glory of this wonderful structure… Even though about 400 years have passed since the construction of this mosque described by Sinan the Architect as ''work of my foremanship period'', the structure has never experienced even a scratch in the earthquakes that hit the area in this period.

Bridge of 15-July Martyrs

Imagine a city and a bridge that connect two continents, with thousands of people going every day from one continent to the other! This is the first suspension bridge built on the Bosporus to connect the two sides of this geopolitically very important and the most beautiful city in the world, providing the easiest way to cross from Asia to Europe. It is certainly one of the symbols of İstanbul.

İstiklal Street and Tram Line

The nostalgic tram launched in 1871 as the first-ever tram in Turkey takes one through the Istiklal (Independence) Street from end to end! Hearing the sound of this age-old vehicle while ‘’walking in İstiklal’’, as the saying goes here, a smile covers the face of people…

Topkapi Palace

The Topkapı Palace that is the second palace complex which was built by the order of Sultan Mehmet the Conqueror after he conquered the city served for centuries as a residence to Ottoman sultans who enlarged and upgraded it into its current condition. It is at the top of the musts for every visitor of İstanbul, because Topkapı Palace and İstanbul have become symbols of one another.

Hagia Sophia

This monument dating back to 532 A.D. is certainly at the top of the musts for every visitor is İstanbul. Converted from a church into a mosque and then into a museum, this architectural work that is one of the most spectacular ones in the world is flooded by thousands of visitors every year. And of course, it is one of the symbols of İstanbul.

There is an uncountable number of symbols identified with Istanbul, from tulips, steamships, bagel vendors to seagulls and ferryboats … too numerous to be counted in a short text like this... We have selected the most prominent ones for you.