Byzantine Constantinople

Istanbul, Europe's largest city, became an urban centre of exceptional size when it was chosen by Constantine the Great as a new Roman capital city. Named 'Constantinople' after him, the city has been studied through its rich textual sources and surviving buildings, but its archaeology remains relatively little known compared to other great urban centres of the ancient and medieval worlds. Constantinople: Archaeology of a Byzantine Megapolis is a major archaeological assessment of a key period in the development of this historic city. It uses material evidence, contemporary developments in urban archaeology and archaeological theory to explore over a thousand years of the city's development. Moving away from the scholarly emphasis on the monumental core or city defences, the volume investigates the inter-mural area between the fifth-century land walls and the Constantinian city wall - a zone which encompasses half of the walled area but which has received little archaeological attention. Utilizing data from a variety of sources, including the 'Istanbul Rescue Archaeology Project' created to record material threatened with destruction, the analysis proposes a new model of Byzantine Constantinople. A range of themes are explored including the social, economic and cognitive development, Byzantine perceptions of the city, the consequences of imperial ideology and the impact of 'self-organization' brought about by many minor decisions. Constantinople casts new light on the transformation of an ancient Roman capital to an Orthodox Christian holy city and will be of great importance to archaeologists and historians.

In 2007 a symposium was held at Texas A&M University to celebrate the twenty-fifth anniversary of Texas A&M University Press's publication of the first volume reporting the Yassiada shipwreck site. Seventeen papers from that symposium featured in this book broadly illustrate such varied topics as ships and seafaring life, maritime trade, naval texts, commercial cargoes, and recent developments in the analysis of the Yassiada ship itself.

Salvage excavations conducted at Yenikapi within the frame of Marmaray and Metro projects brought to light the Theodosian Harbour and rare archaeological remains. The new finds that extended Istanbul's history to 8000 BP include an assembly of 37 shipwrecks dated to the fifth through eleventh centuries AD. This book deals with the genus-species identifications of 27 shipwrecks unearthed by Istanbul Archaeological Museums Directorate and processed by the Division of Conservation of Marine Archaeological Objects, Faculty of Letters, Istanbul University. More than 3000 samples were analysed by Prof. Dr. Unal Akkemik of Istanbul University's Faculty of Forestry. All the shipwrecks uncovered belong to the Byzantine period; however, those of the fifth-seventh centuries were built with coniferous trees like cypress and pine whereas those of the ninth-eleventh centuries were built with broad-leaved trees like oak and chestnut. Ships of the seventh-ninth centuries, on the other hand, reflect a mixture of both tree groups. In overall, the wood identifications indicate a change from the coniferous trees to broad-leaved trees in the time span of fifth to eleventh centuries. Study of the 27 wrecks has not only cast light onto the shipbuilding techniques of the Byzantine period but also produced an invaluable database revealing the change in woods used.

This book records, in text and picture, the discovery of an immense Palace Church erected in 6th-century Constantinople by Princess Anicia Juliana, one of the most distinguished heiresses of her time. The first evidence of the Church of St Polyeuktos was unearthed some 20 years ago and subsequent excavation campaigns over the years revealed a building of great magnificence with lavish decoration and masterly carvings, which pre-dates the renowned Hagia Sophia. Until his early death in 1992, Martin Harrison was Professor of Roman Archaeology at Oxford University. The present volume is his personal account of the excitement experienced in the course of excavation, and he relates with insight and enthusiasm the step-by-step progress of discovery as walls, passages, blocks and carvings came to light.

This work is the first volume of two that will be the full report of major excavations carried out by Dumbarton Oaks and the Istanbul Archaeological Museum at Sarachane in the heart of ancient Constantinople. This volume includes discussion of excavation and stratigraphy; catalogs of sculpture, revetment, mosaic, small finds and other materials: and general treatment of architecture, sculpture, and history of the site. Originally published in 1986. The Princeton Legacy Library uses the latest print-on-demand technology to again make available previously out-of-print books from the distinguished backlist of Princeton University Press. These editions preserve the original texts of these important books while presenting them in durable paperback and hardcover editions. The goal of the Princeton Legacy Library is to vastly increase access to the rich scholarly heritage found in the thousands of books published by Princeton University Press since its founding in 1905.

In 2004, the Istanbul Archaeological Museums started large-scale salvage excavations at Yenikapi within the scope of Marmaray-Metro projects. For the first time in Istanbul's history, archaeological excavations were conducted at one of its Byzantine harbors. When the excavations started, it was not known what this ancient harbor at the mouth of the Lykos (Bayrampasa) River would yield. At first, Ottoman remains were encountered in the excavation area, which covers over 58,000 square meters. Then, one of Constantinople's most important, and the world's best known harbors, the Theodosian Harbor, was reached only 1 meter below sea level. During the ongoing excavations, countless small finds and works of architecture were unearthed. In addition to wood and rope fragments, an unexpected find, a shipwreck, was found in 2005. As the excavation area expanded, a total of 37 ships dating between the 5th and 11th centuries were brought to light. Among the finds are very well preserved small and large merchantmen, as well as galleys from the Middle and Late Byzantine periods, which have been found for the first time. The Yenikapi wrecks constitute the largest collection of shipwrecks ever found together. Another surprise was waiting for the archaeologists 6,3 meters below sea level: Istanbul's oldest settlement. This Neolithic settlement dates back 8000 years and changes the writing of Istanbul's history. The footprints of istanbulites who lived there thousands of years ago were found a few meters below. As the excavations go on uninterrupted, we have now acquired much new information about the city. This exhibition has been prepared in light of the finds from Yenikapi and their scientific study. It presents a section of the city from its first inhabitants to the present, and allows a multidimensional view of trade, seafaring, shipbuilding technology, and everyday life in Constantinople through four wrecks that were found together with their cargo.

İstanbul Marmaray ve Metro projeleri kapsamında, 2004 yılından bu yana Üsküdar, Sirkeci ve Yanikapı’da; 1997 yılından itibaren ise Sultanahmet Eski Cezaevi alanında İstanbul Arkeoloji Müzeleri Müdürlüğü tarafından yürütülen arkeolojik kazı ve sondaj çalışmaları sırasında, gün ışığına çıkartılmış olan taşınabilir kültür kalıntılarının toplumla buluşmasının sağlanması ve İstanbul tarihinin tanıtılması amacıyla gerçekleştirilen sergiye ait dokümanlar “Gün Işığında İstanbul’un 8000 Yılı: Marmaray, Metro, Sultanahmet Kazıları” başlıklı kitap altında toplandı.