Izmir Tower Clock | Zurna

The iconic clock tower of Izmir was depicted on the reverse of Turkish 500 Lira banknotes back in the eighties. The clock was a gift from German Kaiser Wilhelm II to Abdülhamid II, Sultan of the Ottoman Empire… The tower however was designed by Raymond Charles Père, a Levantine French architect and constructed in 1901 to commemorate the silver jubilee anniversary of the Sultan’s accession to the throne.

The decorations are primarily Elaborate Ottoman architecture. The skeleton of the tower is lead and iron stands at 82ft and features 4 fountains or şadırvan around the base in a circle. The columns are inspired by Moorish themes.

In the former Balkan provinces of the Ottoman Empire, particularly in present-day Serbian, Bosnian and Montenegrin towns such as Belgrade, Prijepolje, Sarajevo, Banja Luka, Gradačac and Stara Varoš, similar Ottoman era clock towers still exist and are called Sahat Kula (derived from the Turkish words Saat Kulesi, meaning Clock Tower.

About Izmir, Victor Hugo in Les Orientales says:
‘İzmir is a princess with her most beautiful hat.’

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