Mansions on the Water

That was how American writer H.G. Dwight in 1907 described what is today the oldest surviving yali (yah-lih), the home of Koprulu Amcazade Huseyin Pasha, who served as grand vizier under the Ottoman sultan Mustafa II in the last decade of the 17th century. Though its terracotta-rose paint has long since faded and its timbers have grown weary, the grand house still stands on the Bosporus shore, one of the several dozen remaining yalis of the former Ottoman elite.

It was in the latter half of the 17th century, when the Empire stretched from Makkah to Budapest and from Tunis to Tabriz, that it became fashionable for Ottoman viziers, admirals and civil and military pashas to build prestigious summer homes along the Bosporus, the strait that separates Europe and Asia. These homes were called yalis, a word deriving from the Greek yialos, or seashore.

Koprulu Yali

Built by Koprulu Amcazade Huseyin Pasha, the fifth member of the influential Koprulu family that dominated Ottoman politics during the latter half of the 17th century. The oldest surviving yali bears all the characteristics of the most traditional: a central fountain in the salon, a cumba, or bay-window sitting area, above the water, solid window covers and timber walls painted terracotta red. Inside, despite its disrepair, the elaborate ceiling, with, its Arab and Persian influences, that so over whelmed H.G. Dwight is a reminder of its celebrated past. The built-in cupboards and carved niches that distinguish Ottoman interiors are there, along with, faded interior panels painted with roses, lines and tulips, recalling the Ottoman Tulip Period of the early 18th century, when leading citizens competed to grow perfect blooms.

Like the Newport "cottages" of the American elite in the late 19th century, yalis in their time functioned as extravagant retreats where the owners and their families escaped the sweltering bustle of the city. Today, however, Istanbul's remaining yalis are glimpses into Ottoman high culture across more than two centuries, and the social standing of their owners gave these homes important roles in society, politics and architecture.