Topkapi Palace – Royal Kitchens

As you enter the Second Courtyard, you will find the Royal Kitchen with twenty chimneys. When the kitchens were functional, there were over a thousand cooks plus assistants, preparing and serving meals for various sections of the palace.  It was a structured kitchen with different uniforms being worn by the different roles e.g. desert chef, main meals, etc.

The Exhibit Hall for the Chinese and Japanese Porcelains displays the most representative examples of the existing pieces of porcelain.  Approximately 2,000 of the 12,000 pieces of Chinese and Japanese porcelain in the palace collection are on display in this section.  Some of these porcelain were gifts to the Ottoman palace, whereas others were imported.  The most highly valued Chinese porcelain were used daily by its royal occupants.  Selected pieces are displayed in a chronological order, ranging from the Sung and Yuan dynasties to the Ming and Ching dynasties.

Sections of the kitchens have been kept as they were when in use, while another part is allocated to porcelain and glassware produced in Istanbul. Another section houses the collection of silverware and European porcelain. The unique Chinese celadons are in the room to the right. The exhibition of blue and white, monochrome and polychrome porcelain objects is followed by the Japanese porcelain collection. In the special kitchen where sweets used to be made, everyday kitchen utensils, coffee sets and gold-plated and copper wares are displayed.  The range of giant pots, all in very good condition, was quite impressive.

Helen