Turkish & Islamic Arts Museum
Istanbul Turkish and Islamic Arts Museum is the first museum in our country that covers Turkish-Islamic works collectively. The history of the current building, which is the only private palace that has survived outside the Sultan's palaces, dates back to the 16th century. It was opened to visitors in 1914 in the soup kitchen building in the Süleymaniye Mosque Complex, one of the most important structures of Mimar Sinan, under the name of "Evkaf-ı Islamiye Museum" (Islamic Foundations Museum). In 1983, it has been moved to the İbrahim Pasha Palace to the west of Sultanahmet Square.
Ibrahim Pasha Palace, one of the important structures of Ottoman civil architecture, rises on the "Horse Square", above the old hippodrome levels. It was repaired by Suleiman the Magnificent and presented to his son-in-law and vizier Ibrahim Pasha in 1520. The structure raised on arches surrounds the terrace in the middle on three sides. The first part of the museum is accessed from this terrace by stairs.
