Basilica Cistern Architecture

A crucial feature of the Basilica Cistern architecture is the 336 marble columns on which the structure of Basilica Cistern stands. The largest surviving underground cistern of Istanbul once had a courtyard with a portico and marble columns. The 336 columns of present-day Basilica Cistern were constructed under Byzantine Emperor Justinian, and are made of marble and granite which rise to a height of nine metres.

They are arranged in twelve rows in groups of 28 columns, each spaced around five metres apart. The columns are mostly Corinthian or Ionic, with a few in the Dorian style. Many columns were recycled from older structures from various parts of the Byzantine empire.

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The Basilica Cistern was constructed underneath a Byzantine-era Basilica, the Illius Basilica, which gave the structure its name. Located across the street from Hagia Sophia, the underground cistern is the size of a cathedral. It measures 143 metres in length and 65 metres in width and can hold up to 80,000 cubic metres of water.

The cistern was a water-filtering facility that transported water through two vast Byzantine-era aqueducts to the Great Palace and other imperial residences of Istanbul’s First Hill. Upon its rediscovery under the Ottomans, it was used to transport water to their imperial residence at the Topkapi Palace for a while, after which it lost much of its importance.

An intriguing feature of Basilica Cistern architecture is the presence of Medusa within the structure. Medusa was a Gorgon in Greek mythology, a winged woman who had a head full of living venomous snakes instead of hair and could turn people to stone with her gaze. Her figurines were installed in important structures of ancient times to ensure protection.

Two columns in the northwest corner of the Basilica Cistern stand on blocks that are carved with Medusa’s head. The origins of the two heads are unknown, but they are believed to have been brought from a Late Roman building. Their use in their previous location is not known either.

One of the heads has been positioned sideways, which would negate the power of Medusa’s gaze as per tradition. Another head, however, has been placed in an inverted position, which is not explained in tradition or the cistern’s construction. While the head placed sideways was positioned in such a manner to accommodate its size as per the column, the same could not be said about the inverted head. It is believed that the inverted head was of the right size for the column, but was not placed right side up to lessen the Gorgon’s powerful gaze.