The Harem

   Past the Imperial Divan, to the right, is the modest looking entrance  to another world;
a world of various intrigues, secrets, and vice- the Harem. With  numerous buildings, all- purpose rooms, womens and Sultan's  quarters, long silent corridors, ornate ledges, and glowing tapestries, it  is properly speaking, the most interesting and attractive part of the  Palace.
   There are three entrances to the harem; the gate of the
Coachmenin the second courtyard, the door next to the section of  manuscripts and bindings, and the gate of the Chamberlain ( Mabeyn  Kapısı ) at the back of the apartment of the Blessed Robe. When visiting  the Harem in Groups, it is necessary to enter through the gate  of the Coachmen  
( Arabacılar Kapısı ). Then one can also catsch a glimpse of the court  the Eunuchs the black servants and guardians of the ladies in the  Palace.
   The building, to the left, with the porticos , has the rooms in which  the eunuchs used to live. These men were housed as follows,  according to their ranks; the inexperienced on the top, and the aged  and the skilled on the bottom floors. Thus we observe here the  application of a philosophical reflection probably; when young one  lived in higher places and as a one grew older and nearer to the earth,  he started to dwell on the ground floors.
    As can be seen, there is no end to the punishment in the world.  There fore, giving thanks for the way we are, let us now leave these  props of torture and gloom of this historical play here, and go out.
   From here, we enter the actual harem, and coming out of the court  of the eunuchs, we directly face the principal gate. The counter in the  corridor here, was used for the purpose of putting the food trays that  were brought to the harem from the kitchen. ASt the end of the  corridor is the paved courtyard of the female slaves.

 The Interior of the Harem Topkapi  Palace

   Coming out of here, one enters the biggest courtyard called the  Paved Courtyard of the
Mother- Sultana.
   The door of the hall with the fire place leading to this paved  courtyard is called the door of the Throne. When a prince became a  sultan, the initial ceremony of the coronation would take place
here. The new ruler would sit on the throne placed in front of this  door, and before the rest of this subjects, the people living in the  Harem would swear allegiance to him. 
Later, he would take his seat on the throne in front of the Gate of  Felicity in the Second Courtyard, and there high dignitaries of the  state, the officers of the army, and the learned religious men
of the country would vow to obey him.
   The Hall of the Sultan was originally built by the famous Sinan in the  16th century. It is reported that, in the past, the walls were all covered  with the most precious tiles of the century in which the great architect  lived. But when the building was being repaired under the reign of
Osman III most of the tiles were removed: and only those on which  are inscribed verses from the Koran were left around the hall, at the  place where the big dome joins the walls of the building. The original  tiles were replaced by coloured and gilded decorations in rococo style; 
and the interior of the dome was also decked with design in the same  style. Here, we also notice some European furniture such as chairs and  sofas being brought into the palace for the first time.
   One of the apartments here is open the public so that you can get  an  idea of how an apartment room with its typical furniture in Old Istanbul used to be. These rooms were used as both  living rooms and bedrooms.

 The Harem of Topkapi Palace as  seen from the outside