Historic Istanbul University to revive its long-lost buildings

Istanbul University is embarking on an ambitious project to resurrect some of its long-lost historic buildings, meticulously reconstructing them based on archival records, aerial photos and excavation findings to faithfully revive their original designs.

Approved by Türkiye’s monuments authority, the project aims to restore Telgrafhane, a historic telegraph office, and Arabalık, a former service unit, at the university’s Beyazıt campus.

It also encompasses the early 20th-century psychiatric facility located at the famous Çapa Faculty of Medicine.

Founded in 1453 and considered the oldest public university in Türkiye, Istanbul University is located in the heart of the historic peninsula, with landmark Ottoman-era buildings surrounding the city’s main square in Beyazıt.

Several structures within this ensemble disappeared over the past century due to demolitions, fires and changes in campus layout.

By restoring the university’s incomplete architectural components, authorities intend to strengthen both urban and institutional memory, using strict historical and scientific methods.

The historic telegraph office, built in the late 19th century as part of a military-administrative complex, was demolished in the 1940s. Only its foundation stones survived.

Excavations carried out in 2023 under museum supervision uncovered the original rubble-stone base.

Restitution reports show that the structure once featured a porticoed facade, a wooden frame and a hipped roof — typical of telegraph centers of the era.

Using its two-phase restitution study as a guide, the building will be reconstructed to reflect its authentic architectural plan.

The service unit, once part of the same military complex and used during the Ottoman period as a logistics unit for horse-drawn vehicles, had long disappeared from view.

Following a 2022 decision by the monuments council, excavations revealed its foundation traces.

Based on these remains and accompanying archival documentation, the unit will also be reconstructed true to its historical design.

Dating back to the era of Architect Kemaleddin, a pioneer in Turkish architecture, the psychiatric building at the Çapa Faculty of Medicine campus had lost much of its original character over decades of alterations.

Researchers used architectural drawings, the German Blue maps — comprehensive urban planning documents from the late Ottoman era — and historical photographs to determine its initial form with the goal of rebuilding the structure in line with its original architectural identity.