Virgin Tower
Historical Places of Turkey - Virgin Tower / İstanbul
There are many legends about the construction of the tower its location. According to the most popular legend, a sultan had a much beloved daughter. One day, an oracle prophecised that she would die on her 18th birthday. The sultan, in an effort to thwart his daughter’s early demise, had the tower build in the middle of the Bosphorus to protect his daughter until after her 18th birthday. The daughter was placed in the tower where she was frequently visited only by her father.
On the daughter’s 18th birthday, the sultan brings a basket of fruit as a birthday gift. Upon inspecting the basket, a poisonous snake that had been hiding amongst the fruit bit her and the daughter dies, just as predicted.
The architectural structure of the Maiden’s Tower (Kız Kulesi) dates back to 341 BC. This cape, which was an extension of the Bosphorous straits at the time (there are rumours that it was a peninsula before) used to be called “vus”. At this date, after being a mausoleum built on marble columns for the wife of Commander Chares, a chain was pulled from its location at Sarayburnu to the island where the tower was located, in 410 BC, to make it a customs area controlling the entries and exits of the Bosphorous strait
.At 1110 AD, the first apparent structure (tower) was built by the Emperor Manuel Comnenos. This structure, which was built as a defence tower, was named Arcla, meaning “Small Tower”. Although there is no clear information about this structure, it is believed to be close to its current dimensions.
