Accession Number1990/2.23
TitleLa Pointe du Sérai
Artist(s)J. Pascal and Joaillier SébahArtist NationalityTurkish (culture or style)Object Creation Datecirca 1888-1910Medium & Supportalbumen print on paperDimensions 9 13/16 in x 12 3/8 in (24.92 cm x 31.43 cm);20 in x 16 in (50.8 cm x 40.64 cm)
Credit LineGift of Howard and Margaret BondSubject matterIn this photograph, the viewer looks across a strand of the Golden Horn toward the so-called Pointe du Sérail (in Turkish: Sarayburnu; in English: Seraglio Point), a hilly peninsula in central Istanbul on which stands the Topkapı Palace complex—one of the official residences of the Ottoman sultan. Numerous ships and smaller boats signal nineteenth-century Istanbul's position as a prominent and busy seaport. Sébah and Joaillier, in fact, juxtapose aspects that show Istanbul's modern role as an important economic center with various elements of the city's historic past; for instance, the distinctive forms of the Topkapı Palace, the Hagia Sofia, and the Blue Mosque are all visible from this vantage.
Physical DescriptionView down onto a busy seaport populated by numerous steamships and smaller watercraft. A sliver of land with various towers and domed structures stretches across the horizon line in the distance.
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Keywords
Middle East
city
cityscapes (representations)
cultural landscapes
harbors
imperial palaces
merchant vessels
mosques (buildings)
peninsulas
seascapes
ships
steamships
travel photography