#1704 Turkey

Hagia Sophia ("Holy Wisdom"; Latin: Sancta Sophia or Sancta Sapientia; Turkish: Ayasofya) is the former Greek Orthodox Christian patriarchal cathedral, later an Ottoman imperial mosque and now a museum (Ayasofya Müzesi) in Istanbul, Turkey. Built in 537 AD at the beginning of the Middle Ages, it was famous in particular for its massive dome. It was the world's largest building and an engineering marvel of its time. It is considered the epitome of Byzantine architecture and is said to have "changed the history of architecture".

Wikipedia.org

Property No #356

It's in the list of UNESCO as a part of Historic Areas of Istanbul.
Date of Inscription on the List of UNESCO: 1985

Thank you, Pinar !

Received on: February 25, 2019

#1664 Turkey

 

For more info about Turkey, see received card no #294.

Thank you, Muhammet !

Sent on: October 9, 2018

Received on: November 16, 2018

#1596 Turkey

Pamukkale, meaning "cotton castle" in Turkish, is a natural site in Denizli in southwestern Turkey. The area is famous for a carbonate mineral left by the flowing water. It is located in Turkey's Inner Aegean region, in the River Menderes valley, which has a temperate climate for most of the year.

The ancient Greco-Roman city of Hierapolis was built on top of the white "castle" which is in total about 2,700 metres (8,860 ft) long, 600 m (1,970 ft) wide and 160 m (525 ft) high. It can be seen from the hills on the opposite side of the valley in the town of Denizli, 20 km away.

Known as Pamukkale (Cotton Castle) or ancient Hierapolis (Holy City), this area has been drawing the weary to its thermal springs since the time of Classical antiquity. The Turkish name refers to the surface of the shimmering, snow-white limestone, shaped over millennia by calcium-rich springs. Dripping slowly down the vast mountainside, mineral-rich waters foam and collect in terraces, spilling over cascades of stalactites into milky pools below. Legend has it that the formations are solidified cotton (the area’s principal crop) that giants left out to dry.

Tourism is and has been a major industry in the area for thousands of years, due to the attraction of the thermal pools. As recently as the mid-20th century, hotels were built over the ruins of Hierapolis, causing considerable damage. An approach road was built from the valley over the terraces, and motor bikes were allowed to go up and down the slopes. When the area was declared a World Heritage Site, the hotels were demolished and the road removed and replaced with artificial pools.

Wikipedia.org

Property No #485

Date of Inscription on the List of UNESCO WHS: 1988

Thank you, Muhammet !

Received on: May 3, 2018

#1572 Turkey

Divriği Great Mosque and Hospital (Turkish: Divriği Ulu Cami ve Darüşşifası) is an ornately decorated mosque and hospital complex built in 1228–1229 by the local dynasty of the Mengujekids in the small Anatolian town of Divriği, now in Sivas Province, Turkey. The complex is located in the upper town, below the citadel.

Wikipedia.org

Property No #358

Date of Inscription on the List of UNESCO WHS: 1985

Thank you, Hilal !

Sent on: March 28, 2018

Received on: April 4, 2018

#1553 Turkey

Cumalıkızık is a village in the Yıldırım district of Bursa Province, located 10 kilometers east of the city of Bursa, at the foot of Mount Uludağ. Its history goes back to the Ottoman Empire's foundation period. The village is now included within the border of the Yıldırım district as a neighbourhood. Cumalıkızık was founded as a vakıf village. The historical texture of the village has been well protected and the civilian countryside architectural structures of the early Ottoman period are still intact. Because of this, Cumalıkızık has become a popular but still unspoiled center for tourists.

Wikipedia.org

Property No #1452

Date of Inscription on the List of UNESCO WHS: 2014

Thank you !

Sent on: March 8, 2018

Received on: March 14, 2018

#1533 Turkey

Divriği Great Mosque and Hospital (Turkish: Divriği Ulu Cami ve Darüşşifası) is an ornately decorated mosque and hospital complex built in 1228–1229 by the local dynasty of the Mengujekids in the small Anatolian town of Divriği, now in Sivas Province, Turkey. The complex is located in the upper town, below the citadel.

Wikipedia.org

Property No #358

Date of Inscription on the List of UNESCO WHS: 1985

Thank you, Pinar !

Sent on: February 7, 2018

Received on: February 14, 2018

#1468 Turkey

Thank you, Pinar !

Received on: December 21, 2017

#1407 Turkey

Diyarbakır Fortress, is a historical fortress in Sur, Diyarbakır, Turkey. It consists of an inner fortress and an outer fortress.

The main gates of the fortress are: Dağ (Mountain) Gate, Urfa Gate, Mardin Gate and Yeni (New) Gate. The walls come from the old Roman city of Amida and were constructed in their present form in the mid-fourth century AD by the emperor Constantius II. They are the widest and longest complete defensive walls in the world after only the Great Wall of China (the Theodosian Walls for example are longer in length, but are not continuous).

UNESCO added the building to their tentative list on 2000, and listed it as a World Heritage Site in 2015 along with Hevsel Gardens.

Wikipedia.org

Hevsel Gardens, are the seven hundred hectares fertile lands near Tigris shore, between the Diyarbakır Fortress and the river. The gardens were added to the UNESCO tentative list in 2013. It became a World Heritage Site in 2015, along with Diyarbakır Fortress.

Wikipedia.org

Property No #1488

Date of Inscription on the List of UNESCO WHS: 2015

Thank you, Fatma !

Sent on: September 11, 2017

Received on: September 22, 2017

#1363 Turkey

Ephesus (Greek: Ἔφεσος Ephesos; Turkish: Efes; may ultimately derive from Hittite Apasa) was an ancient Greek city on the coast of Ionia, three kilometres southwest of present-day Selçuk in İzmir Province, Turkey. It was built in the 10th century BC on the site of the former Arzawan capital by Attic and Ionian Greek colonists. During the Classical Greek era it was one of the twelve cities of the Ionian League. The city flourished after it came under the control of the Roman Republic in 129 BC.

The city was famed for the nearby Temple of Artemis (completed around 550 BC), one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. Among many other monumental buildings are the Library of Celsus, and a theatre capable of holding 25,000 spectators.

Ephesus was one of the seven churches of Asia that are cited in the Book of Revelation. The Gospel of John may have been written here. The city was the site of several 5th century Christian Councils (see Council of Ephesus).

The city was destroyed by the Goths in 263, and although rebuilt, the city's importance as a commercial centre declined as the harbour was slowly silted up by the Küçükmenderes River. It was partially destroyed by an earthquake in 614 AD.

Wikipedia.org

Property No #1018

Date of Inscription on the List of UNESCO WHS: 2015

Thank you !

Received on: August 22, 2017

#1345 Turkey

The flag of Turkey (Turkish: Türk bayrağı) is a red flag featuring a white star and crescent. The flag is often called al bayrak (the red flag), and is referred to as al sancak (the red banner) in the Turkish national anthem.

The current design of the Turkish flag is directly derived from the late Ottoman flag, which had been adopted in the late 18th century and acquired its final form in 1844.

The measures, geometric proportions, and exact tone of red of the flag of Turkey were legally standardized with the Turkish Flag Law on May 29, 1936.

Wikipedia.org

Thank you, Pinar !

Sent on: July 18, 2017

Received on: August 2, 2017

#1332 Turkey

Ani (Armenian: Անի; Greek: Ἄνιον, Ánion; Latin: Abnicum; Georgian: ანი, Ani, or ანისი, Anisi; Turkish: Ani) is a ruined medieval Armenian city now situated in Turkey's province of Kars, next to the closed border with Armenia.

Between 961 and 1045, it was the capital of the Bagratid Armenian kingdom that covered much of present-day Armenia and eastern Turkey. Called the "City of 1001 Churches", Ani stood on various trade routes and its many religious buildings, palaces, and fortifications were amongst the most technically and artistically advanced structures in the world. At its height, the population of Ani probably was on the order of 100,000.

Long ago renowned for its splendor and magnificence, Ani was sacked by the Mongols in 1236 and devastated in a 1319 earthquake, after which it was reduced to a village and gradually abandoned and largely forgotten by the seventeenth century. Ani is a widely recognized cultural, religious, and national heritage symbol for Armenians. According to Razmik Panossian, Ani is one of the most visible and ‘tangible’ symbols of past Armenian greatness and hence a source of pride.

Wikipedia.org

Property No #1518

Date of Inscription on the List of UNESCO WHS: 2016

Thank you, Fatma !

Received on: July 19, 2017

#1223 Turkey

The Trojan Horse is a tale from the Trojan War about the subterfuge that the Greeks used to enter the city of Troy and win the war. In the canonical version, after a fruitless 10-year siege, the Greeks constructed a huge wooden horse, and hid a select force of men inside. The Greeks pretended to sail away, and the Trojans pulled the horse into their city as a victory trophy. That night the Greek force crept out of the horse and opened the gates for the rest of the Greek army, which had sailed back under cover of night. The Greeks entered and destroyed the city of Troy, ending the war.

Wikipedia.org

Property No #849

Date of Inscription on the List of UNESCO WHS: 1998

Thank you !

Received on: February 20, 2017

#977 Turkey

For more info about Turkey, see received card #294.

About some facts written on the postcard:

Mustafa Kemal Atatürk (19 May 1881 (conventional) – 10 November 1938) was a Turkish army officer, revolutionary, and the first President of Turkey. He is credited with being the founder of the Republic of Turkey. His surname, Atatürk (meaning "Father of the Turks"), was granted to him in 1934 and forbidden to any other person by the Turkish parliament.

Wikipedia.org

Ferit Orhan Pamuk (generally known simply as Orhan Pamuk; born 7 June 1952) is a Turkish novelist, screenwriter, academic and recipient of the 2006 Nobel Prize in Literature. One of Turkey's most prominent novelists, his work has sold over eleven million books in sixty languages, making him the country's best-selling writer.

Wikipedia.org

Halil Mutlu (born Halil Aliev (Bulgarian: Халил Алиев) on July 14, 1973 in Postnik, Bulgaria) is a professional Turkish weightlifter with several World and Olympic championships. Mutlu is one of the four weightlifters achieving three consecutive gold medals at the Olympic Games. His weightlifting career includes five World championships, nine European championships and more than 20 world records at 52 kg (115 lb), 54 kg (119 lb) and 56 kg (123 lb) combined.

Wikipedia.org

Oil wrestling (Turkish: Yağlı güreş), also called grease wrestling, is the Turkish national sport. It is so called because the wrestlers douse themselves with olive oil. The term "güreş" is shared with other forms of wrestling practiced by Turkic-speakers across Europe and Central Asia, such as the Uzbek kurash, Tuvan khuresh and Tatar köräş. The wrestlers, known as pehlivan (Persian: پهلوان‎ meaning "hero" or "champion") wear a type of hand-stitched lederhosen called a kisbet (sometimes kispet), which is traditionally made of water buffalo hide, and most recently has been made of calfskin.

Wikipedia.org

Mount Ararat (Turkish: Ağrı Dağı) is a snow-capped and dormant compound volcano in Turkey. It consists of two major volcanic cones: Greater Ararat, the highest peak in Turkey and the entire Armenian plateau with an elevation of 5,137 m (16,854 ft); and Lesser Ararat, with an elevation of 3,896 m (12,782 ft).

Wikipedia.org

Turkish delight, rahat lokum, lokum, etc., is a family of confections based on a gel of starch and sugar. Premium varieties consist largely of chopped dates, pistachios, and hazelnuts or walnuts bound by the gel; traditional varieties are mostly gel, generally flavored with rosewater, mastic, Bergamot orange, or lemon. The confection is often packaged and eaten in small cubes dusted with icing sugar, copra, or powdered cream of tartar, to prevent clinging. Other common flavors include cinnamon andmint. In the production process, soapwort may be used as an emulsifying additive.

Wikipedia.org

Thank you !

Sent on: September 8, 2015

Received on: September 21, 2015

#837 Turkey

Safranbolu (from Greek: Σαφράμπολις) is a town and district of Karabük Province in the Black Sea region of Turkey. It is about 200 kilometres (120 mi) north of Ankara and about a 100 km south of the Black Sea coast, or more precisely about 9 km north of the city of Karabük. Former Turkish names of the town were Zalifre and Taraklıborlu and in Greek Theodoroupolis, Θεοδωρούπολις (i.e. city of Theodorus or female Theodora) and latter Saframpolis, Σαφράμπολις. It was part of Karabük Province until 1923 and Zonguldak Province between 1923 and 1995.

The Old Town preserves many old buildings, with 1008 registered historical artifacts. These are: 1 private museum, 25 mosques, 5 tombs, 8 historical fountains, 5 Turkish baths, 3 caravanserais, 1 historical clock tower, 1 sundial and hundreds of houses and mansions. Also there are mounds of ancient settlements, rock tombs and historical bridges. The Old Town is situated in a deep ravine in a fairly dry area in the rain shadow of the mountains. The New Town can be found on the plateau about two kilometers west of the Old Town.

The name of the town derives from 'saffron' and the Greek word 'polis' (city), since Safranbolu was a trading place and a center for growing saffron. Today saffron is still grown at the village of Davutobası which is 22 km east of Safranbolu and probably one of the best quality saffrons in the world.

Safranbolu was added to the list of UNESCO World Heritage sites in 1994 due to its well-preserved Ottoman era houses and architecture.

Wikipedia.org 

Property No #614

Date of Inscription on the List of UNESCO WHS: 1994

Thank you, Hilal !

 

Received on: March 12, 2014

#810 Antalya, Turkey

 Bodrum is a district and a port city in Muğla Province, in the southwestern Aegean Region of Turkey. It is located on the southern coast of Bodrum Peninsula, at a point that checks the entry into the Gulf of Gökova, and is also the center of the eponymous district.

Wikipedia.org 

Muğla is a city in south-western Turkey. It is the center of the district the same name, as well as of Muğla Province, which stretches along Turkey´s Aegean coast. Muğla center is situated inland at an altitude of 660 m and lies at a distance of about 30 km (19 mi) from the nearest seacoast in the Gulf of Gökova to its south-west.

Wikipedia.org 

Marmaris is a port town and tourist resort on the Mediterranean coast, located in Muğla Province, southwest Turkey, along the shoreline of the Turkish Riviera.

Wikipedia.org 

Side is an ancient Greek city on the southern Mediterranean coast of Turkey, a resort town and one of the best-known classical sites in the country. It lies near Manavgat and the village of Selim.

Wikipedia.org 

The House of the Virgin Mary (Turkish: Meryem ana or Meryem Ana Evi, "Mother Mary's House") is a Catholic and Muslim shrine located on Mt. Koressos (Turkish: Bülbüldağı, "Mount Nightingale") in the vicinity of Ephesus, 7 kilometres (4.3 mi) from Selçuk in Turkey.

Wikipedia.org

The Sultan Ahmed Mosque (Turkish: Sultan Ahmet Camii) is a historic mosque in Istanbul. The mosque is popularly known as the Blue Mosque for the blue tiles adorning the walls of its interior.

Wikipedia.org 

Hagia Sophia (from the Greek: Ἁγία Σοφία, "Holy Wisdom"; Latin: Sancta Sophia or Sancta Sapientia; Turkish: Ayasofya) is a former Greek Orthodox patriarchal basilica (church), later an imperial mosque, and now a museum (Ayasofya Müzesi) in Istanbul, Turkey.

Wikipedia.org 

Alanya, formerly Alaiye, is a beach resort city and a component district of Antalya Province in the Mediterranean Region of Turkey, 138 kilometres (86 mi) east of the city of Antalya.

Wikipedia.org 

Aitäh, Sandra !

Sent on: February 10, 2015

Received on: February 23, 2015

PS: She said that it was sent in the beginning of December. No idea where was it for so long..

#769 Trabzon, Turkey

Unfortunately I don't know what waterfall it is. 

Thank you, Elif !

Sent on: December 2, 2014

Received on: December 16, 2014

#693 Istanbul, Turkey

Istanbul (Turkish: İstanbul) is the largest city in Turkey, constituting the country's economic, cultural, and historical heart. With a population of 14.1 million, the city forms one of the largest urban agglomerations in Europe, second largest in the Middle East and the fifth-largest city in the world by population within city limits. Istanbul's vast area of 5,343 square kilometers (2,063 sq mi) is coterminous with Istanbul Province, of which the city is the administrative capital. Istanbul is a transcontinental city, straddling the Bosphorus - one of the world's busiest waterways - in northwestern Turkey, between the Sea of Marmara and the Black Sea. Its commercial and historical centre lies in Europe, while a third of its population lives in Asia.

 Founded on the Sarayburnu promontory around 660 BC as Byzantium, the city now known as Istanbul developed to become one of the most significant cities in history. For nearly sixteen centuries following its reestablishment as Constantinople in 330 AD, it served as the capital of four empires: the Roman Empire (330–395), the Byzantine Empire (395–1204 and 1261–1453), the Latin Empire (1204–1261), and the Ottoman Empire (1453–1922). It was instrumental in the advancement of Christianity during Roman and Byzantine times, before the Ottomans conquered the city in 1453 and transformed it into an Islamic stronghold and the seat of the last caliphate. Although the Republic of Turkey established its capital in Ankara, palaces and imperial mosques still line Istanbul's hills as visible reminders of the city's previous central role.

Istanbul's strategic position along the historic Silk Road, rail networks to Europe and the Middle East, and the only sea route between the Black Sea and the Mediterranean have helped foster an eclectic populace, although less so since the establishment of the Republic in 1923. Overlooked for the new capital during the interwar period, the city has since regained much of its prominence. The population of the city has increased tenfold since the 1950s, as migrants from across Anatolia have flocked to the metropolis and city limits have expanded to accommodate them. Arts festivals were established at the end of the 20th century, while infrastructure improvements have produced a complex transportation network.

Approximately 11.6 million foreign visitors arrived in Istanbul in 2012, two years after it was named a European Capital of Culture, making the city the world's fifth-most-popular tourist destination. The city's biggest draw remains its historic center, partially listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, but its cultural and entertainment hub can be found across the city's natural harbor, the Golden Horn, in the Beyoğlu district. Considered a global city, Istanbul is one of the fastest-growing metropolitan economies in the world. It hosts the headquarters of many Turkish companies and media outlets and accounts for more than a quarter of the country's gross domestic product. Hoping to capitalize on its revitalization and rapid expansion, Istanbul bid for the Summer Olympics five times in twenty years.

Wikipedia.org 

Thank you, Serkan !

Sent on: July 16, 2014

Received on: July 23, 2014

#659 Istanbul, Turkey

Date of Issue: May 9, 2014 | Europa 2014 'National Music Instrument'

Not sure who sent this postcard to me, but thank you anyway.

Sent on: June 6, 2014

Received on: June 16, 2014

#556 Yenişehir, Turkey

The Kocatepe Mosque is the largest mosque in Ankara, the capital of Turkey. It was built between 1967 and 1987 in the Kocatepe quarter in Kızılay, and its size and prominent situation have made it a landmark that can be seen from almost anywhere in central Ankara.

The idea of building the Kocatepe Mosque dates back to the 1940s. On December 8, 1944, Ahmet Hamdi Akseki, the Vice-President of Turkish Religious Affairs, along with seventy-two founding members, established a society known as the "Society to Build a Mosque in Yenişehir, Ankara." In 1947 this society called for projects to be drawn up by architects, but none of the submitted projects were accepted.

In 1956, through the efforts of the late Adnan Menderes, Prime Minister of the time, land was allocated for the project to build a mosque in Ankara, and a request for projects was made once again in 1957. This time thirty-six projects were evaluated, with the joint project of Vedat Dalokay and Nejat Tekelioğlu being chosen as the one to be implemented.

The accepted project was an innovative and modern design. The construction started, but due to heavy critique from conservatives for its modernist look, the construction was stopped at the foundation level. Vedat Dalokay later built a modified version of the Kocatepe Mosque after winning an international competition for the Shah Faisal Masjid in Islamabad, Pakistan in 1969. This mosque, which can accommodate 24,000 worshippers, is one of the largest mosques of the world, and accepted by many as the frontiers of modern Islamic architecture.

After a third architectural competition in 1967, a more conservative or nostalgic design by Hüsrev Tayla and M. Fatin Uluengin was chosen to be built. Completed in 1987, this project is built in a neo-classical Ottoman architecture style, and is an eclectic building inspired by the Selimiye mosque in Edirne, and the Sehzade and Sultan Ahmet mosques in Istanbul.

Wikipedia.org

Thank you, Muammer !

Sent on: March 24, 2014

Received on: April 3, 2014