The Dolmabahce Palace was the Ottoman expression of change towards modernity. Ordered by Sultan Abdulmecid, it was built between 1843 and 1856, at the late stages of the Ottoman Empire. Located at the edge of the eastern European coastline on the Bosphorus, it became the main administrative center of the Ottoman Empire from 1856 to 1922, with a 22 year interruption (1887-1909) in which Yildiz Palace was used by Sultan Abdul Hamid II. It was home to 6 sultans, up until the Caliphate was abolished in 1924.
Its two main architects, Garabet Baylan and his son Nikoghayos Baylan, came from an Armenian family residing in Istanbul. The architecture of the palac read more
La Giralda is one of the important monuments in the city of Seville, Spain. It is the former minaret of the city`s main mosque until it was converted to a bell tower when the city was taken by Fernando III in November 23, 1248. Today, it measures 105 meters high and is one of the most important historical sites in Seville. The Great Mosque, which La Giralda was part of, was also converted into what is known today as the Great Cathedral of Seville.
The Almohad Empire which spanned the southern half of the Iberian penin read more
One of the most prominent monuments in the heart of Cairo is the Cairo Tower. It was built over a span of 5 years from 1956-1961, with the employment of more than 500 Egyptian workers. Its cost ran as much as 6 million Egyptian pounds (or $3 million in 1961 dollar amount). Once completed, it became one of the tallest buildings in the world, measuring at 187 meters. It was the tallest building in Egypt for 50 years, and in Africa until 1971. It was architected by Naoum Chebib. He has chosen a structure that resembles a lotus plant, which is a popular symbol of Ancient Egypt. Its foundation was made of granite brought in from Aswan, just as the Ancient Egyptians have done to built the Pyramids of Giza thousands of years earlier. The tower itself was build of reinforced concrete and designed to be earthquake proof.
The funding for the tower came from an unexpected source: the CIA. In the mid-1950s, Egypt has been f read more
The United Nations building in New York City is one of the prominent monuments in eastern Manhattan Island. It occupies an area of 18 acres and covers a total of four buildings: General Assembly building (domed building), Conference building, Secretariat building and Dag Hammarskjold Library. The Secretariat building is the tallest building in the complex composed of 39 levels reaching a height of 155 meters. The land was donated by the Rockefeller family and the buildings were architected by Wallace Harrison, the Rockefeller family architect.
Just north of the old town district in Istanbul, where the Hagia Sophia and the Blue Mosque stand prominently facing one another, is another monument of important historical significance. This monument is known as the Eyup Mosque. It is located just outside the north Walls of Constantinople near Pierre Loti. This mosque houses the tomb of one of the most important Muslim historical figures, Abu Ayyub al-Ansari (or Eyup in Turkish), that participated in the siege of Constantinople. However, this was not the siege of 1453, but the siege of 670 AD.
Ab read more