Building an Imperial Museum on Byzantine Remains: The Foundation System Built for Istanbul Archaeological Museum by Vallaury Between 1899-1907

Abstract

ABSTRACT Designated as architect by Osman Hamdi, Alexander Vallaury designed the classical building of First Imperial Museum of Ottoman Empire (Müze-i Hümayun - İstanbul Archaeological Museums — IAM), erected between 1891 and 1907 in three phases. The IAM building sprouted inside the land walls of Topkapı Palace, which was built in the acropolis of the ancient Greek city Byzantion, just across from the ruins of the Great Palace of Byzantine Empire. This building is in a core area, symbolizing the imperial power of Roman, Byzantine, and Ottoman eras. Unlike previous studies, which examined mostly the building’s architectural history, this study focuses on the time before its construction. It investigates the understructure remains by utilizing the original drawings and correspondences in the Museum Archive, which were made during the construction of second and third phases of the building in 1899–1907 at the end of the Ottoman Period. Through this investigation, it reveals the reciprocal relationship between the superstructure of IAM and the Byzantine substructure for the first time in the literature. All these sources were used to create a holistic site restitution of the museum buildings, covering old and newfound remains.