Everyday Life In Istanbul

On the map of human existence, Istanbul throughout the
age of empire represented the administrative power
center. Rome, Byzantium and the Ottoman Empire each
took its place in history as a ring of civilization that formed
around this center. To view history from this perspective
means to read the story of humanity in its pages and, in a
sense, to rediscover each time this dazzling star that
...

On the map of human existence, Istanbul throughout the
age of empire represented the administrative power
center. Rome, Byzantium and the Ottoman Empire each
took its place in history as a ring of civilization that formed
around this center. To view history from this perspective
means to read the story of humanity in its pages and, in a
sense, to rediscover each time this dazzling star that
shone in the skies of Anatolia, the Balkans and the
Mediterranean. As mankind discovered Istanbul, it also
discovered itself as a passionate traveler on the road
leading back to its own past. Istanbul today is a
treasurehouse where all our lost values are carefully
preserved. A compass for our social identity that has lost
its way, a touchstone for our decaying aesthetic taste, a
trustworthy scale for our degenerating sense of justice –
Istanbul can assume all these roles while at the same time
generously offering us a human experience and a store of
knowledge capable of answering every question put to it.
“Everyday Life in Istanbul” is a collection of striking
images along a journey back to the roots of the Turks’
social identity. A work embracing the history of an
imperial city in a plane where Man, Culture and Space
relate to each other, it is a noteworthy example of the new
historiography, which sets up a balance among the social
sciences. With its unique style and its theoretical
framework set against a multi-dimensional background
extending from politics to culture, from architecture to