An Art History of Istanbul

By Leslie Camhi

Paris “From Byzantium to Istanbul: One Port for Two Continents” at National Galleries of the Grand Palais (October 10–January 25, 2010). A port city has existed on the banks of the Bosporus for some 8,000 years. This exhibition of nearly 300 objects, including sculpture, ceramics, gold jewelry, ancient artifacts, and recent excavations, explores the complex history of this cosmopolitan center, called Byzantium, Constantinople, and later, Istanbul—a city uniquely positioned at the crossroads between East and West.