Visit the Basilica Cistern with your experienced guide
Listen to the story of Medusa Heads
Recognize a scene in the James Bond movie From Russia with Love
Full description
Visit the Basilica Cistern, built in the 4th century and enlarged in 532 AD, used as water
storage during Byzantine times. Listen to your guide as they explain the mystery of
Medusa heads from Greek mythology.
Explore this cathedral-size cistern, built during the reign of Emperor Justinian I in 532
A.D. to supply water to the Great Palace. It stores up to 80,000 cubic meters of water,
delivered via 20 kilometers of aqueducts from a reservoir near the Black Sea.
Descend the fifty-two stone steps into the entrance of the cistern. The cistern is
surrounded by a firebrick wall with a thickness of 4 meters, coated with a waterproofing
mortar. Hear how the Basilica Cistern's water comes from the Eğrikapı Water
Distribution Center in the Belgrade Forest and travels through the 971-meter-long
Valens Aqueduct and the 115-meter-long Mağlova Aqueduct, built by the Emperor
Justinian.
Includes
Important information
What to bring
● Passport or ID card
Know before you go
● Please note: this attraction cannot be visited without the guide
● All children will be asked to present their valid passport at the entrance of the
museums in order to validate their age
● You cannot enter with a suitcase.
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