In the upper gallery of the Topkapi Palace, 37 portraits of different sultans are displayed in chronological order. Most of them are copies; their originals are in various European countries today.

The portrait of Sultan Mehmet II was painted by the Italian painter G. Bellini in the 15th century, and is in the National Gallery of London. The portrait on display is a copy made by the palace painter Zonaro in the early 1900′s.

The portrait of Sultan Murat V is attributed to the Russian court painter Aiwazowski (19th century), while the portrait of Sultan Abdulaziz (19th century) is attributed to the Polish painter Clobowski. Moreover, there are many more portraits of other sultans to see, including one of Sultan Selim II by Constantin from Kapidag.

There is also the interesting clock collection near the hall of sacred relics in the previous weaponry treasury. The clocks in Topkapi Palace were not exhibition objects, originally, but were for the daily use of the sultans. Some of them were manufactured in the Ottoman Empire, while others reached the Ottoman court through foreign rulers and dignitaries. Read the rest of this entry »

Everyone who dreams to experience an unforgettable vacation to remember must go to Turkey. Once you have a vacation in Turkey you would most probably want to go there over and over again as most of its tourists do.

You might need to get some information before going there, so here it is: Turkey is a land surrounded by seas on three sides.

Turkey is a natural bridge linking Asia to Europe.

On the North Western corner of the Country you can visit magnificent Istanbul, the city extending on the two sides of the Bosphorus Strait, offering a natural beauty and mixing the modern times with remains of far-reaching history, the famous city which was the capital city of the Ottoman Empire for hundreds of years.

The internal Marmara Sea, and the Uludag Mountain which is a popular ski center are also in the North Western part of Turkey.

Izmir is the largest city located on the sea-coast of Aegean Sea which lies along the western coast of Turkey.

Here there are many peaceful bays and modern holiday resorts, such as Kusadasi and Bodrum on this coastline.

The remnants of the famous ancient city of Troy lie along the northern and central areas of this Aegean region. In fact, there are 9 Troys, all were built on top of the older one in different periods of history. You know the famous wooden horse and the love story of beautiful Helen and Paris lived in Troy which caused wars in this region in ancient times. You can see the replica of the historic horse here. Read the rest of this entry »