The Basilica Cistern (built by Justinian)

Hello everyone, I'm Robin Pearson and I'm here to show you what remains of the Basilica Cistern in Istanbul. The Stoa Basilica was a large courtyard just to the west of the Achaia Sophia and just north of the Hippodrome. Built in the late 4th or early 5th century, this porticoed complex was home to a number of important buildings, including law courts, a law school and a huge library and book market. The Basilica was gutted by fire during the Nica riots of 532 AD when huge crowds tried to unseat the Emperor Justinian. He survived and afterwards rebuilt the centre of Constantinople, most famously of course erecting a new Achaia Sophia. But before he rebuilt the Basilica, he had a huge cistern installed under the courtyard. A small cistern may already have been in place, but as was Justinian's way, he expanded the structure massively. The result was the largest covered cistern in the city, which along with the rebuilt Basilica above seems to have been complete by 541. The new reservoir could hold up to 80,000 cubic metres of water. The contemporary historian Procopius tells us that the Emperor's goal was to provide a new storage facility for the overflow of water from the aqueduct of Valens. Thus, when water was plentiful, it could be stored here to be used in times of drought. This is probably true, but some scholars wonder whether the experience of being besieged informed Justinian's decision making, and since he was adding new granaries and bakeries to his home, perhaps the cistern water was really meant to be piped into the palace. The Basilica Cistern remained the largest underground water source in Constantinople throughout the city's history. After the Ottoman conquest, its true extent seems to have been a mystery to the new inhabitants. In 1546, Frenchman Pierre Gilles was searching the city for antiquities when he came upon the cistern. He discovered that those living in the neighbourhood were drawing water from an underground source. One of them took him to their basement, where they descended into this cavernous wonder from another time. Pierre hopped in a small boat to explore what became known to the Turks as the Sunken Palace. The cistern was renovated by the Ottoman authorities in 1723 and at the end of the 19th century. It then played a small role in the James Bond film from Russia with Love, where it was supposedly located under the Soviet consulate. In 1985, 50,000 tons of mud were removed from the cistern, walkways were built, and it was ready to be opened to the public two years later. As you might imagine, this underground cistern is pretty dark, so although this footage isn't too exciting, it does capture accurately the atmospheric experience of walking through the columns. If you have a good understanding of photography though, you can bring the scene to life in various ways. The cistern is 140 meters long by 70 meters wide, it's held aloft by 336 columns, they are placed in 12 rows of 28 columns each, and 98 of these columns share this acanthus leaf design and seem to be of a 5th century style. They may have been recycled from an existing building or possibly were just outdated builder's stock. Each is about 8 meters in height, set 4 meters apart. 90 columns in the southwest corner were walled off in the 19th century, and others may be under maintenance during your visit, all adding to the disorienting sense that you don't know where this forest of columns really ends. Only one column shaft stands out from the others, its distinctive pattern has been as being like peacock's eyes or like teardrops. This column seems to have been taken from the Forum of Theodosius, where along with 7 other columns it held aloft a special triumphal arch. Scholars believe that rather than eyes or tears, this pattern is mimicking the knots of a tree, specifically those on the gnarled club of Hercules. I talk more about this in my video on the Forum of Theodosius. The information board nearby speculates that this crying column was put here to memorialise the many slaves who died during the cistern's construction, but anyone who knows anything about the Romans knows that they did not get sentimental about their slaves, nor would they put up a memorial that was going to be underwater for the next thousand years. But I enjoyed seeing this modern myth attach itself to a piece of old Constantinople, it fits very nicely into the history of Byzantium. Check out episode 168 of the podcast to hear some of the tall tales told to tourists over the centuries. As you reach the end of the walkway, you will come across more artefacts from earlier forums that Justinian recycled. These are the famous gorgon heads which were used to hold up smaller columns in this corner of the cistern. In Greek mythology, the gorgons were three sisters with snakes for hair, whose gaze could turn men to stone. One of the sisters, Medusa, was famously killed by the hero Perseus. A similar gorgon head, which you can see at the Istanbul Archaeological Museum, was found near the Forum of Constantine in the 19th century. So we assume that these heads were part of pagan decoration attached to Constantine's Forum. These massive carved stones were obviously considered valuable building blocks to help hold up the rebuilt basilica. But why is one turned upside down and the other on its side? It could just be that this made a sturdier fit with the columns above, but some scholars wonder whether the construction workers did this deliberately to negate any potential power that the statuary might possess. There is a long history in Byzantium of connecting statues with demons and other occult phenomena, so it remains a possibility. The Basilica Cistern is a popular tourist site, so be prepared for a queue, as well as large staircases to get in and out. If it's a hot day, then visit in the afternoon when you want to escape the sun. There is always something going on inside to try and make a few extra lira, so be prepared if that offends your sensibilities. If you'd like more detailed information about the Basilica Cistern, then visit thebyzantinelegacy.com. It's a fantastic website providing breakdowns of the Byzantine buildings that can still be seen today, and there you'll find most of the still images and sketches used in these videos. If you'd like to learn more about Justinian, or the Forum of Theodosius, then follow these links.