Cistern Of Bin Veber Direg (Or The Thousand and One)-Citerne De Bin Veber Direg Vu Les Mille Et Une-Die Cisterne Bin Veber Direg (Oder Die Tausendste Und Eine)

Artist	William Henry Bartlett (1809-1854)
Engraver	James Carter (1798-1855)
Date	1839
Technique	Steel Engraving
Category	Ottoman Empire And Turkey
Source	The Beauties Of The Bosphorus (London Published For Proprietors By Geo. Virtue 26 Ivy Lane, 1839)

Description

Binbirdirek Cistern is located in the Sultanahmet district of Istanbul. Binbirdirek Cistern, the second largest water reservoir of Istanbul, was built during the reign of Constantine the Great (4th century). The cistern consists of 224 columns (212 of them are today) in an area of 3584 m2. The columns in the cistern consist of two superimposed bodies, with headings in the form of a truncated pyramid with no embroidery on them. The cistern dried up over time and has been used for other purposes since the 16th century.