Galata Tower is one of the most iconic structures in Istanbul, looking over Beyoğlu and Karaköy from its perched position, while the colorful lights of the tower can be seen from all over the city at night.

Galata Tower

Galata Tower is one of the most known and visited touristic places not only in Istanbul but also in Turkey. As its name makes clear, it is located in the Galata district of Istanbul, which is easily accessible.

The tower is often called the Galata Tower. Galata Tower, a medieval structure built hundreds of years ago, is made entirely of stone. A brief look at the history of Galata Tower.

Although it is not known exactly when the Galata Tower was built, it is generally accepted that the tower was built by the Byzantine Emperor Justinian in 528 as the Lighthouse Tower. Later it fell into the hands of the Genoese. It was known as ‘Christea Turris’ or Christ’s Tower by the Genoese, while the Byzantines called it ‘Megalos Pyrgos’ or the Great Tower.

During the Genoese period, however, the tower took its current form, where the Galata district was inhabited by the colonies of the Republic of Genoa and served as a series of economic and commercial services in the Mediterranean and Black Seas.

In 1509, the tower was severely damaged by an earthquake, but in Edirne II. It was restored by the famous Ottoman architect Hayreddin, who also built the Sultan Bayezid complex. During the reign of Suleiman the Magnificent, the tower had a very different purpose because it was used to hold prisoners sentenced to work at the Kasımpaşa Naval Shipyard.

A great fire occurred in 1794 and destroyed this tower a lot, but Sultan III. After the devastating effects of another fire in 1831, the tower was restored twice, on commission from Sultan Mahmut, and once again with the addition of a conical shaped tip.

Today, the 69.90-meter-high tower only serves as a tourist attraction, with visitors topping out with 360-degree views of Istanbul. Don’t let this long distance scare you. Fortunately, an elevator takes visitors up to the seventh floor, but the last two floors can only be accessed by taking a flight of stairs.

Galata Tower Features

The height of the Galata tower from the ground to the tip of the roof is 69.90 meters. The walls you see outside are 3.75 meters, and the inner diameter of the circle is 8.95 meters. The outer diameter was built as 16.45 meters. When you think that you put the tower on a scale, its weight is approximately 10 thousand yon. The main reason for this weight is both the wall thickness and the fact that the body is made of untreated rubble stone.

Skulls and bones were found in many channels in the pits below the ground. As you can see from here, the middle space basement was used as a dungeon at the time. In addition, the tower has witnessed some suicides throughout its history.