The Imperial Treasury (Hazine) of Topkapi Palace is now included in the general admission ticket and well worth a visit. It has a vast collection of art, jewelry and precious stones on display in three rooms. The second room holds the greatest pieces, with this Topkapi dagger as the star of the show. It is a golden hilt, ornamented with three large emeralds, topped by a golden watch and emerald lid.

Visiting the Topkapi Palace (Topkapı Sarayı) in Istanbul will take at least half a day, more if you’re thorough. The final version of the palace covered an area of 700.000 m² and was home to as many as 4.000 people.

The famous Topkapi Palace (Topkapı Sarayı) in Istanbul consists of four courtyards. The first courtyard is freely accessible, so the real (and paid) visit to the palace starts at the Gate of Salutation (Babus Selam), also known as the Middle Gate (Orta Kapı). Only the sultan and the queen mother (Valide Sultan) were allowed to pass the gate on horseback.