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20-623: This subterranean cistern was called Basilica because it was located under a large public square, the Stoa Basilica, on the First Hill of Constantinople . Prior to its construction, a great basilica stood on the spot. It had been built during the Early Roman Age between the 3rd and 4th centuries as a commercial, legal and artistic centre. The basilica was reconstructed by Illus after a fire in 476. Ancient texts indicated that

40-541: A thickness of 4 metres (13 ft) and coated with a waterproofing mortar. The Basilica Cistern's water came from the Eğrikapı Water Distribution Centre in the Belgrade Forest , which lie 19 kilometres (12 mi) north of the city. It traveled via the 971-metre-long (3,186 ft) Valens (Bozdoğan) Aqueduct , and the original 115-metre-long (377 ft) Mağlova Aqueduct, which was built by

60-726: A water filtration system for the Great Palace of Constantinople and other buildings on the First Hill, and continued to provide water to the Topkapı Palace after the Ottoman conquest in 1453 and into modern times. The existence of the cistern was eventually forgotten by all but the locals who still drew water from it until, in 1565, the French traveller Petrus Gyllius left a record of it. Gyllius recorded being rowed in between

80-510: Is given the chance to explore a section of this cistern in a memory sequence entitled The Yerebatan Cistern. The cistern also features in Jean-Baptiste Andrea 's film thriller Brotherhood of Tears (2013). In the sequence, the lead character, acting as a transporter (played by Jeremie Renier ), delivers a suitcase to a mysterious client (played by Turkish actor Ali Pinar). The cistern with its inverted Medusa pillar featured in

100-526: The basilica cistern contained gardens surrounded by a colonnade that faced the Hagia Sophia . According to ancient historians, Emperor Constantine built a structure that was later reconstructed and enlarged by Emperor Justinian after the Nika riots of 532, which devastated the city. Historical texts claim that 7,000 slaves were involved in the construction of the cistern. The enlarged cistern provided

120-730: The 2013 Dan Brown novel Inferno (as well as its 2016 film adaptation ). The cistern is featured in Age of Empires IV as one of the two Castle Age Landmarks of the Byzantines, named Cistern of the First Hill Seven hills of Istanbul Istanbul is known as the City on the Seven Hills ( Turkish : Yedi tepeli şehir ). The city has inherited this denomination from Byzantine Constantinople which – consciously following

140-716: The Emperor Constantine, with no reference to Justinian, and is fictitiously located under the Soviet consulate. In reality it is a long way away from the former Soviet (now Russian) consulate in Beyoğlu . The cistern plays a key role in Dorothy Dunnett 's historical novel Pawn in Frankincense (1969), fourth volume of The Lymond Chronicles . In the fantasy series The Old Kingdom , the reservoir beneath

160-531: The Emperor Justinian. The weight of the cistern is carried on the columns by means of the cross-shaped vaults and round arches of its roof. The Basilica Cistern has been restored several times since its original creation. The first repairs were carried out in the 18th century during the reign of the Ottoman sultan Ahmed III in 1723 by the architect Muhammad Ağa of Kayseri . The second major repair

180-617: The Ottomans). The first hill on which the ancient city of Byzantium was founded, begins from Seraglio Point and extends over the whole area containing Hagia Sophia , the Sultan Ahmed Mosque and Topkapı Palace . On the second hill are to be found the Nuruosmaniye Mosque , Grand Bazaar and Column of Constantine . The second hill is divided from the first by a fairly deep valley running from Babiali on

200-673: The Xērolophos ( Greek : ξηρόλοφος ), or "dry hill," it extends from Aksaray to the Theodosian Walls and the Marmara . It is a broad hill with three summits producing a triangle with apices at Topkapı , Aksaray, and Yedikule . It was divided from the rest of the city by the Lycus creek. Medusa (mythology) In Greek mythology , Medusa ( /mɪˈdjuːzə, -sə/ ; Ancient Greek : Μέδουσα means "guardian, protectress") may refer to

220-486: The cistern after being removed from a building of the late Roman period. There is no evidence to suggest that they were previously used as column bases. Tradition has it that the blocks are oriented sideways and inverted in order to negate the power of the Gorgons ' gaze. The cistern was used as a location for the 1963 James Bond film From Russia with Love . In the film, it is referred to as having been constructed by

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240-408: The cistern appear to have been recycled from the ruins of older buildings (a process called 'spoliation' ), likely brought to Constantinople from various parts of the empire, together with those that were used in the construction of Hagia Sophia . They are carved out of different types of marble and granite. Fifty-two stone steps descend into the cistern which is surrounded by a firebrick wall with

260-518: The columns and seeing fish swimming in the water beneath the boat. This cathedral-size cistern is an underground chamber approximately 138 metres (453 ft) by 65 metres (213 ft) – about 9,800 square metres (105,000 sq ft) in area – capable of holding 80,000 cubic metres (2,800,000 cu ft) of water. The ceiling is supported by a forest of 336 marble columns, each 9 metres (30 ft) high, arranged in 12 rows of 28 columns each spaced 5 metres (16 ft) apart. The capitals of

280-461: The columns are mainly in the Ionic and Corinthian style, with the exception of a few Doric capitals with no engravings. One of the columns is carved with raised pictures of a Hen's Eye, slanted branches, and tears, and resembles the columns of the 4th-century Triumphal Arch of Theodosius I (AD 379–395), erected in the 'Forum Tauri' Square , today's Beyazıt Square . The majority of the columns in

300-818: The east Eminönü . The third hill is now occupied by the main buildings of Istanbul University , the Bayezid II Mosque to the south and the Süleymaniye Mosque to the north. The southern slopes of the hill descend to Kumkapi and Langa. The fourth hill on which stood the Church of the Holy Apostles and, subsequently, the Fatih Mosque , slopes down rather steeply to the Golden Horn on the north and, rather more gently, to Aksaray on

320-652: The model of Rome – was built on seven hills too. The seven hills, all located in the area within the walls , first appeared when the valleys of the Golden Horn and the Bosphorus were opened up during the Secondary and Tertiary periods . In the Ottoman Age , as in the earlier Byzantine period, each hill was surmounted by monumental religious buildings (churches under the Byzantines, imperial mosques under

340-592: The palace in Belisaere was inspired by the cistern. The finale of the 2009 film The International takes place in a fantasy amalgam of the Old City, depicting the Basilica Cistern as lying beneath the Sultan Ahmed Mosque , which, in the film, is directly adjacent to the Süleymaniye Mosque . In the 2011 video game, Assassin's Creed: Revelations , the player-controlled character, Ezio Auditore ,

360-593: The south. On the fifth hill is the Mosque of Sultan Selim . The fifth and the sixth hills are separated by the valley running down on the west to Balat on the shore of the Golden Horn. On the sixth hill is the Mihrimah Sultan Mosque . The districts include Edirnekapı and Ayvansaray . Its gentle slopes run out beyond the line of the defense walls . The seventh hill, known in Byzantine times as

380-483: Was completed during the 19th century reign of Sultan Abdulhamid II (1876–1909). Cracks in the masonry and damaged columns were repaired in 1968, with additional restoration in 1985 by the Istanbul Metropolitan Museum. During the 1985 restoration, 50,000 tons of mud were removed from the cistern, and platforms were erected to replace the boats previously used for touring the cistern. The cistern

400-403: Was opened to the public on 9 September 1987. It underwent additional cleaning In May 1994. Then in 2017 it was once again closed for restoration and earthquake-proofing, reopening to the public in 2022. The bases of two columns In the northwest corner of the cistern reuse blocks carved with the face of Medusa . The origin of the two heads is unknown, though it is thought that they were brought to

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