Topkapı Palace
Following the end of the Ottoman Empire in 1923, Topkapı was transformed into a museum by a government decree dated April 3, 1924. The Topkapı Palace Museum is administered by the Ministry of Culture and Tourism. The palace complex has hundreds of rooms and chambers, but only the most important are accessible to the public today, including the Ottoman imperial harem and the treasury, called "hazine" where the Spoonmaker's Diamond and Topkapi Dagger are on display. The museum collection also includes Ottoman clothing, weapons, armor, miniatures, religious relics, and illuminated manuscripts like the Topkapi manuscript. The complex is guarded by officials of the ministry as well as armed guards of the Turkish military. Topkapı Palace is part the Historic Areas of Istanbul, a group of sites in Istanbul that were added to the UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1985.
Topkapı Palace
The Courtyard of the Sultan's Consorts and the Concubines ("Kadın Efendiler Taşlığı / Cariye Taşlığı") was constructed at the same time as the courtyard of the eunuchs in the middle of the 16th century.
It underwent restoration after the 1665 fire and is the smallest courtyard of the Harem.
The porticoed courtyard is surrounded by baths ("Cariye Hamamı"), a laundry fountain, a laundry, dormitories, the apartments of the Sultan's chief consort and the apartments of the stewardesses ("Kalfalar Dairesi").
The three independent tiled apartments with fireplaces overlooking the Golden Horn were the quarters where the consorts of the Sultan lived. These constructions covered the site of the courtyard in the late 16th century.
At the entrance to the quarters of the Queen Mother, wall frescoes from the late 18th century depict landscapes, reflecting the western influence.
The staircase, called the "Forty Steps" ("Kirkmerdiven"), leads to the Hospital of the Harem ("Harem Hastanesi"), the dormitories of the concubines at the basement of the Harem and Harem Gardens.