Category: Infrastructure
Type: Aqueduct
Location: Mithatpaşa, Eyüpsultan
Date: 1554-1562
Period: Ottoman Empire
Designer: Mimar Sinan
Photos: TRT Haber (trthaber.com)
The Mağlova Aqueduct, a masterpiece of civil engineering designed by Mimar Sinan between 1554 and 1562, stands as one of the most significant components of the Kırkçeşme Water Supply System in Istanbul. Spanning the Alibey Stream in the Eyüpsultan district, the structure is renowned for its exceptional structural integrity and aesthetic elegance, characteristics that were further refined when Sinan rebuilt it following a catastrophic flood in 1563. Architecturally, the aqueduct reaches a height of 36 meters and extends approximately 257 meters in length, featuring a sophisticated two-tier arrangement of arches. Its most striking technical feature is the use of massive triangular buttresses, which Sinan meticulously engineered to provide stability against the force of the water while maintaining a sense of rhythmic transparency. As a synthesis of functional utility and artistic expression, the Mağlova Aqueduct continues to be cited by architectural historians as a pinnacle of sixteenth-century Ottoman engineering and a testament to Sinan’s versatile genius in both urban infrastructure and monumental design.
