The relief crosses of the unknown beauty of Sultanahmet have never been written. When you go to Sultanahmet Square, we will examine the hidden crosses that do not attract your attention.
The crosses on Çukurçeşme in Sultanahmet Square will attract more attention after that.
Çukurçesme’s Historical Story
It is difficult to have exact knowledge about the fountain because Çukurçeşme’s book is lost. According to the estimates of the historians, Çukurçeşme is part of the Kırkçeşme Water Facilities built during the reign of Süleyman the Magnificent. It is thought that Çeşme was built by Mimar Sinan.
Fountain is not actually in the pit, it is done as a helmet with the square. But when the Sultanahmet Square is filled and the floor is raised, the fountain remains in the pit.
Çukurçeşme consists of 4 different fountains. Such a union was made considering the crowd in Sultanahmet Square. Because there were celebrations, weddings and thousands of people attending for weeks at this celebration. So the only fountain could not meet the need of the plaza.
Crosses on the Fountain
The Ottoman fountain used the remains of the Byzantine Hippodrome. Some of the remnants he used had crucifixes. The Ottoman, an Islamic state, did not mind this situation and built this fountain that would serve the people by using Byzantine remains.
The Ottoman, showing the example of tolerance, did not sculpt the crucifixes and used them as they are. There are three crucifix reliefs on the fountain. One of the crosses is engraved on marble. The other two are embossed on marble.
The sculpted cross is found between the second and third fountain, and the relief is found in the third fountain. In this fountain, which is a cross in his forehead and his throat, he drank water for about 400 years in the blood of the Ottoman State.
Çukurçeşme is located in Sultanahmet Square where Terzihane Street joins the square just ahead of the Museum of Turkish-Islamic Arts.
