Beyoglu – historically known as Pera – is commonly known as the city centre of Istanbul for tourists. After the old city (Fatih), Beyoglu was considered the second city of Istanbul. Due to its historic nature, the vast majority of Consulates are in Beyoglu, as are many historic schools, places of worship, and of course the famous (or perhaps infamous) Istiklal Cadde. Beyoglu, along with Nisantasi, is the heart of Istanbul’s night life and is the shopping Ying to Nisantasi’s luxurious Yang.
There are many historical buildings in Beyoglu, but instead of focussing on the major mansions and consulates, we take a look at the lesser known Palaces.
Ankara Palace
Ankara Palas, located on Inonu Cadde, is one of the buildings that has seen the lives of Turkish politicians along with historic events in the building. Ayaspaşa Russian Restaurant, located on the ground floor of the building, has been serving since 1943. The restaurant is also known as the place where former Prime Minister, Bülent Ecevit, proposed to his future wife Rahşan Ecevit – a famous artist and writer. This building is the house where Özer Ciller, a famous businessperson, went to meet Tansu Çiller’s family to ask for her hand in marriage. At that time, Çiller’s family was living here. Of course, Tansu Çiller went on to be Turkey’s first Female Prime Minister. Ankara Palace is also home to Pera Property’s headquarters.
Azaryan Apartment
Azaryan Apartment is a spectacular – almost a parody – of Art Nouveau and Neo-Baroque architecture in Istanbul. Located on Inonu Avenue again, it was built in 1903 by Leon Gurekian commissioned by the Azaryan family. The exterior of the building is decorated with superb examples of Art Nouveau and Neo-Baroque decorations. When the Azaryan family settled in France, it changed owners and became known as Gumussuyu Palas. It has since housed many consulates and today houses the consulate general of Ghana.
Bazlamacı Apartment
Grigoris Vaslamatzis, who founded the Olimpos soda factory, decided to build this family building, with its construction complete in 1932. Due to the events of September 6-7, the family had to sell the soda factory and the apartment they lived in and emigrated to Greece. Then, the flats of the apartment were sold one by one and became private property.
Botter Apartment
Botter Apartment was built by the famous Italian architect Raimondo D’Aronco, a famous Art Nouveau architect of his time. He was commission by Monsieur Jan Botter, the tailor of Abdulhamid II. Jan Botter established his own workshop and tailor shop in this building and lived with his family. The Botter Fashion House, located on the ground floor of the apartment, is the first fashion house in Turkey. Along with the art Nouveau style, it draws attention with the head of Medusa on its façade. Its prime location on Istiklal Avenue has not prevented it from falling into a state of disrepair – awaiting sympathetic restoration.
Doğan Apartment
Dogan Apartment, built on Serdar-ı Ekrem Cadde (just off Istiklal Cadde) in 1894, has an Italian architectural structure. There are 49 flats in total in the building consisting of 4 blocks in an area of 400 m². The view from its roof is one of the rare places that has a close up Istanbul panorama. Some scenes of films such as Eşkıya and Muhsin Bey, which are important films of Turkish cinema, were shot here. It hosts celebrities such as Teoman, Sezen Aksu, Şener Şen, Okan Bayülgen and Tarkan.
Built in 1894, this historic building was commissioned by the Helbig family, a Belgian banker family. The name of the building at that time was; Helbig Apartment. The buildings are laid out in a “U” shape, with a 450 sqm courtyard.
Frej Apartment
The Frej Building was commissioned by Selim Hanna Frej at the beginning of the 20th century by Alexandre Necosmos Yenidunia and Kyriakides. It is one of the most prominent works of Istanbul Art Nouveau. The exterior of the apartment is coated with stones brought from Malta. The interior was designed with materials from Italy. There are decorations of children, owls, hawks and insects on the carrier columns. Frej Apartment which has a view of the Golden Horn, is known for its view as well as for the tragic love story of Madam Anjel.
Kamondo Apartment
Kamondo Apartment
Located in Serdar-ı Ekrem Street, the building owned by the Kamondo family is the one of the oldest building in that region and presumed built in late 19. Century. It is designed to accommodate a family on each floor and also has a shared terrace. Although it is a representative of classical neo-renaissance architecture, it draws attention with its wood material exterior. Names such as Abidin Dino, Yaşar Kemal, Sait Faik, Ahmet Hamdi, Melih Cevdet Anday, Oktay Rıfat, Orhan Veli lived here for a while.
Mısır Apartment
Mısır Apartment (or Egyptian Apartment), one of the first reinforced concrete buildings of Istanbul, was built in 1910 by architect Hovsep Avazuryan and commisioned by Abbas Halim Pasha, one of the administrators of the Egyptian state. It still maintains its attractiveness with its pleasing curves and floral patterns in Art Nouveau style. Turkish poet and writer of the Turkish National Anthem, Mehmet Akif Ersoy lived here from 1936 until his death. Another Turkish poet, Mithat Cemal Kuntay also lived in this apartment. The Founder of the Turkish Republic and its first President Mustafa Kemal Ataturk’s dentist Sami Günzberg’s clinic was again located in Mısır Apartment. The building is located on a prime position of Istikal Avenue.
St Antoine Apartment
St Antoine Apartment was built in 1912 by Italian architects Guilio Mongeri and Edoardo de Nari, who were born in Istanbul. It consists of two six floor blocks connected to each other by a passage. It is located in a building complex connected to the Church of St Antoine and is one of the first reinforced concrete buildings of Istiklal Street. The Neo-Gothic style was used and was home to Catholic Italian families for many years.
