Dolmabahçe Palace

About

Rising at the water's edge on the European shore of the Bosphorus, Dolmabahçe Palace is the most striking work of the period when the Ottomans abandoned classical architecture for the baroque and rococo grandeur of the West. With its gold-leaf ornamentation, crystal balustrades and dazzling halls, it rivals any European palace. The star of the museum collection is the four-and-a-half-tonne giant crystal chandelier hanging in the Ceremonial Hall, a gift from Queen Victoria of England. Its Bohemian crystal and cast Baccarat staircases reveal the wealth of the era. The palace also holds a special place in national memory as the place where Mustafa Kemal Atatürk spent his final days and passed away; all its clocks are stopped at 09:05, the hour of his death.