Land Walls / ‘Karasurları’ – A Cultural Heritage of Istanbul

Istanbul Land Walls ‘Kara Surları’ had hosted several communities and cultures, had served as Byzantine, Constantinian, Theodosian, and Ottoman city walls for protection, survived against natural disasters, wars, and tragedies, and reached at its recent form as a permanent city enclosure, a memorial wall…

We have designed short, medium, and long-distance pedestrian, bicycle, and public transportation routes (like Mermer Kule – Ayvansaray, Yedikule – Çemberlitaş, Zeytinburnu – Eminönü, Haliç – Marmara), beginning from Land Walls through inner districts of the Historical Peninsula of Istanbul. Land Walls always plays the major role for bringing the Historical Peninsula to future, together with Istanbul Sea Walls. We suggest a landscape preservation strategy for the Land Walls and its vicinity that resides on some key design concepts within an ecological framework of culture tourism, environmental and economic sustainability, four seasons pastoral texture, and balance of nature and the city.