Eyup Sultan Camii, Istanbul, Turkey

My guide, Mehmet Tetik (www.turkishguides.org\tetik) told me that we would be visiting one of the holiest sites in Istanbul.  I confess I may have the details wrong because the remarkable story unfolds over a centuries. I’m not connected to Internet here so can’t source it. Naturally I’d recommend if you’re interested to hunt down the details as I will eventually.  Apparently a closest friend  Mohammed and family had travelled to Constantinople in the first of a series of attempts at conquest. He’d died here.  When Mehmet II conquered Constantinople in in the 15th century, someone remembered he’d been buried here. By the descriptions of the time they were able to locate his grave.  The special trees he was buried under were a key clue as well as being at the base of a hill.
(Aha, I've had time to get to internet and review the story again.  Eyup Sultan was the standard bearer of the prophet Muhammad.  He was buried during the First Arab Seige of Constantinople in the 670's.)
Because he was so revered for his loyalty and friendship with Muhammed his tomb became a holy shrine with the local square being filled will worshippers overflowing from the Mosque erected by the tomb.  It also became a holy place of burial so that as far as the eye can see there are tombs, it being considered especially auspicious in Islam to be buried near the revered.
This was particularly a place where women came to seek blessings. It was also a place where boys came after their circumcision usually age 7 to 10 but may be as late as puberty.  It is called Khitan.  Circumcision was an important ritual for boys and they received gifts and were treated like a prince at this special time.
(I found it interesting that in the propaganda of the west no one complains about the ‘genital mutilation of boys’ whereas the feminists go on at length about the genital mutilation of women. My Muslim doctor friend described her ‘circumcision’ as no different than the circumcision of the ‘foreskin’, since ‘they just remove the outer edge of the labia majora in the ritual." Knowing this I figured the radical feminists would be demanding equality and circumcisions for themselves in the west if circumcision (genital mutilation of males) was universal. I certainly will never forget the horror I felt at a botch circumcision by a Jewish female paediatrician which left me preferring the Rabbi's skill at the brisques I attended where the whole family and community were watching the surgery.  There was no room for a botch up and cover up there.)
Throughout history adults have had rites of passage for their children including genital mutilations (circumcisions of boys and girls), scarring, tattooing, feet binding, lip extensions and in America today it’s ear piercing, breast enhancements and cosmetic surgery.
As a physician I think attention should be focussed on the quality of care and the certainty of high standards of results.  Frankly I think the world over it might be best handled by plastic surgeons with the community watching or by priests or imans who do six months  training in advanced surgery and septic technique.
There is obvious no place for ‘clitorectomy’ in modern civilization. Clitorectomy is like making boys eunuchs.  It’s barbaric.  We might all agree that certain others should be denied pleasure or the chance to reproduce (some ignorant journalists and particularly stupid politicians, never ourselves, mind you) but that doesn’t mean we should continue or accept such practices. These should not be lumped for political reasons into a term such as ‘circumcision’ and even “genital mutilation’. By these terms all cosmetic and plastic surgery stands the risk of being described as ‘mutilation’.
Frankly given my increasing girth with Christmas chocolate no one would consider liposuction “mutilation” in my personal case. My back and feet frankly would be thankful that I lessened the load by any means.
The sarcophagus above the grave is for ‘ornamentation’. The body is buried in the ground. The Moslem religion requires keeping the body of the dead in tact. Cremation is not accepted.

Istanbul Archeological Museums

These are terrific museums. I’m a great fancier of museums having spent days in them around the world. It began when I lived in London and took my lunch breaks wandering about the fabulous British Museum. I loved the Museums of Mexico City and Athens. The museums of Washington DC are really a treat.   I was just in the Hermitage last year.  This is one of the better ones with a really well thought out lay out and display. I always wish I had more time. But this day  we were on a schedule wanting to get to the palace before it closed. One could easily spend a most enjoyable day here.
When we walked through the museum, my guide Mehmet Tetik wanted me to see the highlights.
There are three main museums. Archeological Museum, and Museum of Ancient Orient and Museum of Islamic Art.  Renovations were going on so some of the most famous sarcophagus were not on display.  In particular the Alexander sarcophagus with the mostly intact frieze.
I liked that there were exhibits from the Hittites simply because I’d read of them in the Old Testament Bible.
The Ishtar Gate is truly an artistic wonder..





The Kadesh treaty is the oldest known ceasefire. It was made between the Hitties and Egyptians from around 1259 BC





Great purple sarcophagus.




The Siloam Inscription is Biblical Hebrew from the 10th century bc. Mehmet told me that when he had guided Jews they wanted first to see this when they came to the museum as it is such an important treasure.



The Troy exhibit was most
interested. There were many cities at the site, the Red lines representing the Helen of Troy time with jewelry from Helen of Troy. Today's Armenian Kim Kardashian probably has much more impressive jewelry but in it's day this was no doubt Vogue. And given the story of her beauty, less was likely more.


The snakes head from the Hippodrome column was all that was left of the three heads.




There was a very informative exhibit on the Roman aqueduct system.






You can’t help but love seeing a man and his dog immortalized.





A bust of Sappho from the Island of Lesbos.



Showing Persian time.