Audio GuideCistern of Theodosius

In the heart of Istanbul’s historic centre, beneath vibrant streets and overshadowed by the city’s modern skyline, lies a silent marvel that has endured for nearly sixteen centuries: the Şerefiye Cistern. Built in the early fifth century under Emperor Theodosius the Second, this underground reservoir offers a compelling glimpse into the hidden world of ancient Constantinople, once the crowning capital of the Byzantine Empire.

marco zanussi

At that time, water was Constantinople’s most urgent concern. The city stands on a peninsula with scarcely any rivers, so it relied on an impressive network of aqueducts—most famously the Valens Aqueduct—to carry fresh water from distant hills. To guard against siege or drought, water was stored deep underground in vast cisterns. The Şerefiye Cistern, also known as the Theodosius Cistern, was among the grandest, with its waters flowing to public baths, fountains, and the imperial palace.

柳云（liu yun柳云）

Stepping inside, you find yourself among thirty-two graceful marble columns, their polished shafts rising to support brick domes and elegant arches. Each is crowned with finely carved Corinthian capitals, adorned with curling acanthus leaves, set in neat symmetrical lines. The air is cool and still, and every step echoes against stone that was shaped so many centuries ago. Above, the ceiling forms billowing, sail-like vaults distributing the weight, while the thick walls, more than two metres across, were once coated in shimmering waterproof plaster, their rounded corners expertly shaped to withstand the pressure of the water within.

Rouslan Valonen (LibertyToursLLC)

For centuries, the Şerefiye, together with its sister cisterns such as the nearby Basilica and Binbirdirek, slumbered beneath the city, buried by layer upon layer of changing life above. As Ottoman traditions brought new ways of managing water, these cisterns were forgotten, eventually sealed beneath splendid mansions and imposing government buildings.

Rediscovered and carefully restored in recent years, the Şerefiye Cistern now welcomes visitors as a unique museum, enlivened with music, immersive light, and dazzling colourful projections that illuminate its domed ceilings. Here, you can admire both its remarkable engineering and the unique columns crafted especially for this place, while modern technology reveals the ancient stonework in all its former glory. Standing among these centuries-old arches, you sense both the ingenuity of the civilisation that built them and the enduring, unbroken flow of the city’s history.