Unspecified/General

On a tiny islet just off the Asian shore at Uskudar, where the Bosphorus opens into the Sea of Marmara, the Maiden's Tower has stood guard over the waters of Istanbul for centuries and become one of the most romantic images of the city. A structure has occupied the rock since antiquity, when the Athenians and later the Byzantines used the spot to control the strait and levy tolls on passing ships, and the present tower, much rebuilt over the years, dates in its essentials from the Ottoman period, having served as a lighthouse, a quarantine station, a customs post and a defensive point. The tower's Turkish name, Kiz Kulesi, and its English one both echo a cluster of legends: the best known tells of a princess shut away on the islet to escape a prophecy that she would die of a snakebite, only for the serpent to reach her hidden in a basket of fruit; another links it to the Greek tale of Hero and Leander. Such stories have given the little tower an outsized place in the city's imagination, and it appears in countless paintings, films and photographs. Restored in recent years, it is open to visitors who reach it by short boat trips from the Asian and European shores, and inside there is a cafe and viewing area giving a memorable outlook back toward the skyline of the old city, the palaces of the Bosphorus and the ferries crossing the strait. Floodlit after dark, the tower is a favourite subject for evening photographs and a popular spot for special occasions. Set against the backdrop of the busy waterway, it offers both a dose of legend and one of the finest views in Istanbul, best enjoyed on a clear day from the water. Over its long history the islet has served many practical purposes beyond the romance of its legends, from a chained defensive point guarding the harbour in Byzantine times to a lighthouse warning shipping, a quarantine hospital during outbreaks of disease, and a control post for the busy traffic of the strait, and each era left its mark on the much-rebuilt structure. The most recent restoration reopened the interior to the public with a cafe, exhibition space and viewing terrace, and the short boat ride out to the rock is part of the pleasure of a visit. From the islet the outlook sweeps across the mouth of the Bosphorus to the domes and minarets of the historic peninsula on one side and the hills of the Asian shore on the other, a panorama that has made the little tower a favourite of artists and photographers for generations and a beloved symbol of the city to its residents.

Type: Tourist Attraction

Address: Istanbul, Turkey